Slightly Altered
by Popful
Summary: The War Between Heaven and Hell ended abruptly, stranding angels and demons on a Medius vastly different from Slightly Damned. Follow Buwaro, a boy growing up in the town of Thornwood and living with his loving adoptive parents, Iratu and Azurai, as he and his friends take on a horrifying menace that threatens to tear apart reality itself!
1. Chapter 1: They're Your Parents?

This** is a work of fan-fiction, the characters and setting belong to Sarah Wilson, aka The Chu, and extreme liberties have been taken with them. **  
**The characters' ages, back-stories, personality, and overall behavior have been changed drastically from their canon counterparts.**

* * *

Death looked onwards at the carnage unfolding before him, listening to  
the mad, tortured cries of the wraiths that were tearing apart Heaven  
and Hell. His glowing white 'eyes' narrowed. "...I warned them."

* * *

Many ages ago, the War of the Gods had been taken to Medius, the gates  
of Heaven and Hell opening, Gaia and Syndel sending their creations to  
the final battle that would decide which of the gods would reign supreme.

The war lasted seemingly forever. Then, one day, the gates shut. The gods became silent.

Not knowing what to do without their respective gods' orders, angels  
and demons decided to call an uneasy truce with eachother, and the Medians whose world they had invaded.

As milennia passed, they eventually coexisted peacefully...

...More or less.

* * *

Buwaro Ricardo-Sydney was woken up by a loud "PEEP!" from his Thaddeus, his red wright wyvern.

He groggily rubbed his eyes and yawned. "G'morning to you too, Thaddeus."

And a good Autumn morning it sure was, a clear blue sky,  
clear air, and the firey-colored leaves were signs that today would  
either be a good day, or a good-looking bad one.

In the dining room, Iratu and Azurai, his Daddy and Dad, who had adopted him  
when he was a baby, were playfully 'arguing' with eachother while eating breakfast.  
They loved doing this, Dad only called Daddy things like "shithead" as terms of endearment.

Daddy was kind of a freak, he was actually the world's tallest demon (about 12 feet), and  
had to wear a special Inverted Moon Pendant to shrink to a normal-ish size.  
For a long time, Daddy didn't have that pendant, hence why everything  
in the house was way oversized.

At the moment, Daddy hovered over Dad's shoulder. "You ain't cherishin' me, honey!  
You said you'd honor, cherish, and obey me. You ain't ever done any of that."

Dad stabbed his blueberry waffles with his fork. "Hey, I obey you goddamned fine when you're loud enough!"

"Which is never. Unlike you, grumpy!"

Buwaro walked into the room and put some bacon on his plate. "Morning, dads."

Dad stopped mutilating his breakfast for a second. "Mornin', son!"

After breakfast, Dad carefully inspected Buwaro. "You're ready to go, you've taken  
your bath, brushed your teeth, combed your hair?"

He had. "Yep."

"Got everything packed, your pencils, erasers, notebook...?"

"Yep, and my lucky star." He put on the little star-shaped trinket  
Dad had made for him a long time ago. It opened up to reveal a  
photo of the three of them at Thornwood's annual Summer Carnival,  
posing in front of a huge stuffed chicken that Buwaro had won that day,  
Daddy was wearing a silly balloon hat in that picture, wearing the cheesiest grin ever.

Daddy patted Buwaro's shoulder. "Be good today, honey!"

"I'll try, Daddy!" Yeah, he'd try.

A girl in yellow ran up to Buwaro, waving. "Hey, Bu! Long time no see!"

Nevermind.

"Sam! It's been a while, hasn't it?"

Buwaro (presently 16) had first met Samantha Kailum when he was 12,  
and she (presently 12) was 8, she lived a nomadic life with her uncle, Cliff Sinclair.

"It sure has! How's my sidekick been doing?" Her sidekick being Toby,  
who lived in the neighborhood before Buwaro's parents had moved in.

"Not really sure, his parents seem to think I'm a bad influence, so I don't see him that often."

"Figures, blame the demon who happened to be there. The way they raise  
him, it's pretty much my duty to de-wuss that kid before he dies of a heart-attack."

"He's more likely to die of a broken neck, knowing you."

"Pfft, please. Have I EVER gotten you and him in trouble?"

"Yes."

* * *

Two years ago, Buwaro was accompanying Sam and Toby, helping  
her break some wyverns out of a cargo train.

Buwaro was rather unsure of the situation. "Sam, how did I let you talk me into helping you break into a train?"

Sam melted the lock to the boxcar door with a fireball she'd conjured.  
"Look, these wyverns we're gonna free were bred to be sold, they're  
gonna get shot if nobody's buying." She pulled the door open, and hopped inside.  
"C'mon, you two, we gotta haul butt and free these li'l guys! I'll start opening the cages on the left,  
Toby, you open the middle ones, Bu, you do the ones on the right!"

Sam, apparently having done this sort of thing before, was opening  
the locks in record time, Toby was timidly unlocking the cages and  
stepping away, scared that the wyverns inside might bite him, and  
Buwaro had opened the last cage on his side, and was having a hard  
time getting a particularly affectionate red wright wyvern off him.

"Woo! Fly away, li'l guys, be free!" Sam cheered the escaping reptiles as they flew off into the great blue yonder.

Buwaro, completely failed to get the red serpent off him. "You heard her, be free already, shoo!"

Just as they were about to hop off and flee, a loud, piercing whistle  
startled them.

Buwaro and Toby fell flat on their butts, covering their long, floppy ears.

As they were getting up, the train started moving, and quickly picked up speed.

Sam prepared to jump out the boxcar door.  
"Alright, on the count of three, we jump off and roll onto the ground! One, two-"

Buwaro grabbed her by the shoulder. "HOLD IT, Sam! We are on a moving  
vehicle, which happens to be going at about 20 or 30-something miles per hour!"

"Pfft, please, I've done this before. Anyway, one-"

"On a steep rocky incline?" Buwaro pointed out the jagged rocky hill about 10 feet tall that they were currently passing over.

"Oh. Er, no, I haven't."

"Then _don't_. _Try it_."

"Fine, '_mom_'!" She sat down. "So, you guys have any ideas?"

Toby sat by the open door. "We could enjoy the view, I guess."

Buwaro had one hand in a little leather sack, the other shooing the red wyvern.  
"Three honey balls (get off me, you little runt)."

Sammy looked quizzically at him. "What?"

"Three popcorn balls (not you, this little pest)."

"Huh?"

Buwaro sighed. He'd have to say it. "Three Crunky Treats."  
Into his hand flew three muffin-sized balls wrapped in wax paper.

Toby also stared at Buwaro. "What was that about?"

Buwaro handed Toby and Sammy two of the wrapped balls.  
"My magic sack's picky about what you call its contents when you wanna retrieve them."

Unwrapping the paper revealed popcorn held together by honey.

Sam looked pretty amused. "And the bag insists that they're called Crunky Treats?"

"My dad makes these, occasionally, he says they got that name because  
I couldn't say 'crunchy' when I was little."

The wyvern kept coming back to Buwaro regardless of how often he  
pushed it away.

Toby laughed. "You might as well name him, he's not going away anytime soon."

Sam's face lit up. "Hey, how about 'Slyther'?"

Toby thought for a second. "Or maybe 'Tyrone'!"

Buwaro shrugged. "I had a pet rock named 'Thaddeus' once, but it ran away."

At 'Thaddeus', the wyvern made a loud "PEEP!"

Buwaro clapped.  
"The wyvern wins, his name's PEEP!"

Sammy laughed. "No, dude, he seemed to like 'Thaddeus'."

Thaddeus sat on Buwaro's shoulders contentedly. "PEEP!"

Everyone stared at the newly christened serpent.

Buwaro shrugged. "Thaddeus it is, then. Wouldn't it be an unlucky name, though?"

"PEEP!"

It was the kind of Autumn day that makes the beholder happy to be  
alive, the clear bright cyan sky complimenting the mountainside the  
train was passing through, a bird's-eye view of the dense forest  
nearby showing the trees leaning gently in the direction of the cool  
wind that was intensified by the rapid locomotion of the train.

The three good friends eating sweet and crunchy Crunky Treats with  
each other completed the moment.

Just then, they saw Sakido the mail-carrier fly by.

Buwaro stood up. "**Hey! Sakido! We're down here, come**  
**help us! HEYYYYYY!**" He poked at Thaddeus. "Thaddeus, go tell her we're stuck on this train!"

Thaddeus simply looked at him with the dumbest expression possible.

Buwaro spoke slowly, gesturing towards Sakido, who was fading away fast,  
"_Go to her_," then pointing to the floor. "_bring her here_."

Thaddeus simply yawned and fell asleep.

Buwaro sighed at sat back down. "Thanks a _lot_, you useless reptile."

When the train reached its destination, Buwaro and co. managed to sneak off  
without any incident.

Buwaro approached someone passing by. "Excuse me, sir, where are we?"

The stranger was a black-and-blue scaled water demon.  
"This is Verdenola, which is famous for its Glittering Coast.  
Also for being close to a merfolk village. Are you three lost?"

Immediately, Buwaro shook his head. "No, no, we're just a wandering trio, going wherever chance takes us."

The demon shrugged. "Well, if you're low on funds, I run the local Trouble Center."  
He handed them a business card. "My name is Lakritz Atalanta. Tell them I sent you if you stop by there sometime."

Sam nodded. "Will do!"

Verdenola certainly showed all the tell-tale signs of being a seaside  
community, with wooden buildings, sand scattered all over the road by  
the wind, and by people who had just come from the beach.

Sam looked around her. "Well, let's see what all's here!"

Thaddeus peeped in agreement.

Toby crossed his arms and tapped his foot. "Shouldn't we focus on getting back home, though?"

Buwaro looked at his pendant. "Yeah, I don't like worrying my parents."

Toby looked at Buwaro curiously. "I don't think I've ever seen your parents, Bu."

"You haven't? Huh. I've got a picture of them in my pendant."

"Can I see it?"

"Sure." Buwaro handed it to Toby, who opened it up.

Toby seemed confused. "_They're_ your parents?"

"Well, yeah."

"They look nothing like you. Heck, I can't even tell which one's your mom."

"I'm adopted, I don't have a mom."

"You... have two step-dads?" Toby seemed to have hard time wrapping his head around the idea.

"Two _dads_."

Toby gaped at Buwaro, much to the latter's surprise.  
"... Well, I guess there's nothing wrong with it, but... It's weird."

It had never really occurred to Buwaro until then that it was unusual  
to have two parents with the Same gender. "I don't see why-"

Sam shoved Toby aside. "Hey, we'll be needing money for a train ticket, why  
don't we go see what that Trouble Center thing is like while we're here?" She smiled awkwardly.

The Trouble Center, pretty much looked like every other sand-blasted shack in town,  
except that it had a sign with faded green smiley-face logo with  
the words _**Helper's Guild Trouble Center**_ carved and painted on it.

A little bell attached to the door tinkled as they walked in.  
On the wall hung a portrait of a friendly-looking man with a huge scar over  
his left eye. A plaque below it said "Herbie Smith, Our Founder"

A blond young man at the counter waved at them. "Hi, what'll your business here be?"

Buwaro decided to do the talking. "We're here for a job. Lakritz Atalanta sent us."

"Izzat so? You know how it works, right?"

Buwaro nodded. "I know the part where you wear a button, help people  
with stuff, then have them sign a piece of paper, but I'm not sure how  
the whole thing works, like how you fund this whole thing."

"Well, people pay the Trouble Center to post  
advertisements on billboards, and help-wanted ads in the building, and  
part of that money goes towards keeping the place running, while the  
other part is what we pay people who work for the Trouble Center with.  
We also accept donations, wink wink!"

Buwaro nodded again. "So, what do we have to do to become members of the Helper's Guild?"

The young man handed Buwaro a piece of paper. "First, you three take the Herbietic Oath."

They all read it aloud "I solemnly swear to always help those in need, and to  
conduct myself honourably."

"And there you go! Now take these buttons and wear them. You'll find  
work in a heartbeat! To start, try looking at the help-wanted ads I mentioned earlier."

The various jobs they did (with or without the Center's involvement)  
ranged from mundane things, like helping someone move into a new house, finding lost pets, and being a  
lifeguard (it was Toby who took this one, and he was surprisingly good at it),  
to more interesting things like the following incident.

Sam read the flyer aloud. 'Actor wanted to play the lead in a musical  
production of Monster and the Maiden'. Gee, wonder who'd be qualified  
for _that_ job." She nudged Buwaro. "_Hint, hint_!"

Buwaro shrunk with unconvincing faux-modesty. "Aww, I'm not that great  
at acting, singing-voice aside."

Sam glared at him, arms crossed. "Bu, cut the 'I'm not qualified for  
this' crap. You've got the horns, you've got the grumpiness,  
you've got the voice. You practically _are_ the Monster!"

Buwaro's eyes rolled. "Gee, thanks. I guess it couldn't hurt."

Later, at the auditions, dozens of people of various races lined up,  
each aiming to please the stern-looking judges, and win their 4 hours  
of fame. As more and more hopefuls (some of whom he thought were  
pretty good) were turned down, his chances of landing any role at all  
seemed very small indeed.

After hearing his moving rendition of the  
Monster's 'I Feel Alive Again', and his intense performance of Anton's villain song "Too Bad For You, Lovely",  
however, the judges unanimously agreed that he was perfect for one of the lead.

As he was handed the script and shown his costumes, Buwaro couldn't  
help thinking there had been a mistake. "... Are you seriously casting me as Elanor? As in, the _Maiden_?"

The director, a solemn old man, nodded. "You have a beautiful, very  
feminine voice, and the perfect attitude and demeanor for the role."

"But I'm a _boy_! How am I the least bit feminine, _at all_?!"

"You're way too thin to be the Monster. For Elanor, however, you've  
got the figure, you've got the attitude, you've got the voice. You practically _are_ a maiden!"

It was night when the trio (quartet, if you count Thaddeus) turned in all the signatures at the Trouble Center.

Mr. Atalanta was locking the door and putting up the Closed sign.  
"You kids have anywhere to stay for the night?"

Sam held out their earnings from that day.  
"We've probably got enough money for one night at the inn, see?"

Buwaro worked it out in his head. It was 13 Tules, 8 Keros, and 44  
Manas. 29 Manas is a Kero, 17 Keros is a Tule, adding up to a total of  
13 Tules, 9 Keros, and 15 Manas.

Mr. Atalanta looked at the money they'd saved up. "I am afraid not, a  
night at the inn is 20 Tules." He then handed them three envelopes  
with stamps, and three pieces of paper. "Write to your parents. I can  
tell that you are not 'wanderers', your clothes are in too good a  
condition, and you look too well-fed."

Buwaro opened his mouth as if she was about to object, then closed it  
when she realized it would be no use.

Mr. Atalanta continued. "I don't know what you three are doing so far  
from home, but I'm sure that your parents are very worried by now. I  
have already made reservations for you three at the Collodi's Crawfish  
Inn. Good evening." And with that, he walked quietly away.

At the inn, after they'd gotten into their rooms, showered, and after  
Buwaro had retrieved his pajamas from his magic sack and changed into  
them, he began writing his letter.

_Dear Dad and Daddy, sorry I worried you, I'm okay and have sufficient  
lodgings for the night. I'm at Verdenola, I've been working for the Trouble  
Center to save up enough money for a train ride back home, and a  
generous water demon named Lakritz Atalanta has paid for a night's stay at a local inn._

Sam and Toby are here with me, tell Toby's parents and Mr. Sinclair.  
I don't have enough paper to tell the whole story about how we got here,  
but I assure you that it wasn't my idea, I was just looking after them.

I will tell you everything when I get home.

_Love, your son Buwaro Ricardo-Sydney aka 'Bu-bu'_

_P.S.; Any humane way to get rid of clingy, over-affectionate wright wyverns?_

_P.P.S. I've got good news, and bad news. Good news is, I got a part in a production of Monster and the Maiden! _

_Bad news is, I'm the Maiden.  
_


	2. Chapter 2: Too Bad For You, Lovely

Drazil fought valiantly to protect the gates of Heaven, wraith after  
wraith fell before his unfathomably massive sword, the Asur-Akkaba.

But they were relentless, possibly endless, and even a Guardian only  
has so much strength.

He never gave up, still fighting to the end. His last words were  
"Forgive me, Mother..." His sword shattered as he faded away.

* * *

Most agree that the war started with an argument.

Some say Gaia wouldn't share Medius with the demons, wanting the whole  
world for herself and her angels, and Syndel fought to claim his right to it.

Others say Syndel wanted to sate his bloodlust on the ungrateful  
Medians who only revered Gaia, and never thanked him even though he  
had helped create their world.

Whatever the cause, the war raged on, and the Gods had forgotten something important.

Death had figured it out, but nobody listened to him.

* * *

Buwaro thought about what Toby had said yesterday. He knew Toby didn't  
mean anything by it, but it stuck in his mind.

He'd never thought his situation was unusual, since that's what he grew up with.

So why did Toby think it was weird? His parents were arguably the  
weirder couple, a human and a jakkai.

Toby's very existence weirded him out, who did Toby think he was,  
calling Buwaro's family weird?

Sam jostled him. "C'mon, lazy bum! Wake up!"

Buwaro rose out of bed slowly, yawning. "I wasn't sleeping, I just got  
lost in my thoughts."

"Suuuuure you did. Honestly, how do you live without me? Anyway, get  
dressed, you gotta rehearse, chop chop!"

At the rehearsal, Buwaro had reluctantly accepted the fact that he'd  
be playing a girl, and began to practice singing Elanor's first song,  
'Adventure, Come Find Me!'.

He knew it by heart, having owned the 'Monster and the Maiden'  
souvenir record when he was little, and had sung it frequently  
(replacing any instances of the word 'girl' with 'boy', of course).

As he practiced, a massive female earth demon  
with chocolate-brown fur and a porcine face wearing fake horns  
on her head approached. "Yo, you Buwaro, by any chance?"

Buwaro thought, upon looking at her, that she was the right size and  
wrong gender to play the Monster. "Yeah, that's me. Who're you?"

"My name's Sahne, and I's gonna play the Monster."

Buwaro had so many potential responses to this in his mind, he had to  
leave his body standing there staring dumbly while he internally  
looked through each one.

_Yep, you sure look the part._

_Wouldn't you hit your head on the lights?_

_You practically are the Monster!_

_How much of that's a costume?_

_You remind me of a teddy bear I once had as a kid._

_Tell me where you shop for clothes, my Daddy would like to know!_

_You know that your name means 'cream' in Jargon? It really seems to fit you._

Sahne interrupted his thoughts. "Looks like we's both be  
miscast, I auditoned to be Elanor, myself."

Finally, common ground! Thank gods for crappy casting decisions!

Buwaro laughed. "Yeah, but at least we're still the opposite sex."

Sahne smiled sweetly. "Yup. Anyway, which scene should we try together first?"

They decided on the dance scenes first.

Buwaro had danced before at the Holly Ball the year before, so he knew  
enough to get by.

At first, Sahne did hardly any moving other than holding his hand and  
stepping along, apparently afraid of accidentally stepping on his  
foot. As they practiced, she did loosen up a bit, and eventually did a  
passable job.

Next, they went on to doing Elanor and the Monster's duet, "They Can't Stop Us Now!"

Sahne's sweet-as-honey speaking voice contrasted with her deep, powerful, and very, _very_ masculine singing voice.

It was obvious to Buwaro why she'd been chosen.

Just then, a tall, dark-skinned, green-eyed man wearing a black  
masquerade mask walked into the room and bowed. "Bonjour,  
mademoiselles! It is I, Anton, Seeker of Hearts! Played by the  
handsome and enigmatic artiste known only as Ortimor!" He kissed  
Buwaro on the cheek, and settled for shaking Sahne's 'hand' after  
failing to reach her face.

Yeah, he practically _was_ Anton.

Buwaro wiped at his cheek in disgust. "Do you do that to everyone you meet?"

Ortimor winked. "Only the ladies, and the cute boys dressed as ladies!"

"Well, we're busy rehearsing our parts, right now, you'll have to go do yours."

"Very well, then! Adieu for now, sweetlings!" And with that, he walked  
away humming "Too Bad For You, Lovely!"

Buwaro wiped at his face as if the man had left some kind of  
pervert-stain that wouldn't wash off. "It has to be an act, nobody can  
naturally be that damn fruity."

Sahne nodded. "Yup."

After Buwaro and Sahne left the rehearsal for the day, Sam, Thaddeus,  
and Toby awaited them.

In swimsuits.

Buwaro crossed his arms. "Where did you two get those?"

Sam didn't seem to catch on to Buwaro's incoming rage. "We used a  
little of the money we had saved up, I mean, we _are_ near a  
beach, and- WOAH, LADY, YOU'RE HUGE!"

Thaddeus seemed surprised, too. "PeeeeEEEEEEeeeep, peep!"

Buwaro smacked his forehead. "_I'm sure she's aware of that_, Sam."

"I know, but MAN, she's even bigger than your dad! She's like a big  
huggable teddy-bear or something, except she's a person, and she looks  
ess like a bear than a-"

Buwaro but his hand on her mouth. "Shut_** UP**_, Sam!"

Sahne chuckled. "It's arrite, I get that all the time. Anyway, since  
you gots some swimsuits, why not make the best of it? It's a nice day, ain't it?"

Buwaro sighed. "Fine, I'll go put on mine."

Sam mocked his serious voice, rolling her eyes. "Fine, I'll go have  
fun with you guys, I might have to actually enjoy it, if it doesn't kill me."

Switching back to her normal voice, she asked "Bu, have you been happy  
about anything, like, ever?"

Buwaro laughed in spite of himself. "You know me way too well, don't you?"

"PEEP!"

So they all went to the beach, and Buwaro, at Sam's coercion, got in  
the water and managed to actually enjoy it.

Sahne splashed around in the water. "I ain't ever seen you guys 'round  
here before, and I's guessing you ain't on a vacation, so what're doing here?"

Buwaro decided not to outright lie, but also not to tell the whole  
truth. "We got on the wrong train, and we've been saving to get back  
home." He glared at Sam. "At least, _**I**_ have."

Sam was rather annoyed. "Holy crap, dude, it was only 2 Manas apiece,  
I got them second-hand. Now will you quit complaining and have a good time already?"

Buwaro would've blushed if he were a human or angel. "Okay, okay, sorry."

Toby spoke up at last. "So, what was your name, again?"

Sahne smiled. "It's Sahne, you two are?"

Buwaro introduced them. "This is Sam, this is Toby."

Sam grabbed Thaddeus. "And this clingy little guy's Thaddeus! So, you  
do you live in this neighborhood?"

Sahne shook her head. "I only visit every 3 months or so for a week,  
but I's been here often enough to tell who lives here. You gots a  
place to stay, tonight? I's gonna head back home after the play's  
over, y'all can crash at my beach house for a while until you save enough to go back."

They all simultaneously said "Thanks!"

"No problem. Ya'll take care, now, see ya at rehearsal, Buwaro!" She  
walked out of the water, making huge splashes with each step.

The sun was beginning to set after they dried off and left the beach.

Sam picked up Buwaro's magic sack. "One pink shirt, one pair of red  
panties, one pair of dark green shorts." These items flew into her hand.

Buwaro looked at the clothes in her hand. "Sam... Those don't look  
like the ones you were wearing earlier."

Sam walked nonchalantly into the dressing room and began changing  
clothes. "They were bought second-hand as well, and for crying out  
loud, Bu, did you expect us to wear the same clothes for however long  
we're here? We've got a total of 19 Tules, 12 Keros, and 7 Manas, so  
quit being such a control freak."

Buwaro sighed. "Sorry, I'm just worried about my parents, there's no  
real way they can write back, since I didn't include a return address."

Toby had retrieved his clothes from the bag and put them on(they were  
a little big for him). "Speaking of addresses, where did Sahne say her beach house was?"

They all halted.

This time, they all smacked their foreheads.

* * *

A barque sailed alone in the ocean.

Her voyage had been long, and the sea had been cruel to her, violently  
tossing her to and fro in the bitingly cold night.

The sky had been the sea's accomplice, pouring icy water on the vessel  
while the sea tortured the sailors. Some went overboard and drowned (they were the lucky ones), some  
had broken limbs, while others had lost limbs or eyes.

There were barely enough men to run the ship, and they had all but given up hope.

This day was different.

A strong wind and a following sea, the weather being relatively  
merciful, and land being sighted not far from where they were, all  
causes for celebration. The crew cheered with what little wind they  
had left, they could finally return to dry land.

But then the outlook cried "Sail ho!", and that was the beginning of the end.

Hell's Baroness was approaching them.

The same winds and sea that had briefly shown them favor quickly  
betrayed them, and they were boarded.

The barque was seized by demons of all elements, who wasted no time in  
tearing apart the weakened crew.

The last to board the barque was the demon ship's captain, the ship's namesake herself.

She was a water demon with lavender-blue fur that had dark stripes,  
and cold sapphire eyes without a trace of white in them.

She walked towards the captain's quarters, and opened the door.

The human captain took his sword from the mantle, and lunged at her.

She cut off his hand, and kicked him to the floor. She walked slowly  
towards the man, savouring the terror on his face. She knelt down, and  
whispered. "The last thing you hear will be my name. I am Lazuli  
Marina." She slit his throat, and wrote her name on the wall in his blood.


	3. Chapter 3: That's My Girl

They asked around about Sahne, did anyone there know her, could they  
trust her, etc.

Pretty much everyone there knew her, and often mentioned some example of  
her kindness and generosity.

Eventually, they found her beach house, and knocked on the door.  
Sahne opened the door. "Oh, there you are! Sorry I forgot to mention  
where this place was, pretty much everyone here knows where to find  
me, so I musta thought you guys did."

Sahne's guest room only had one bed.

Buwaro put his hand in the magic sack. "One sleeping bag." And he  
pulled out a sleeping bag for one person. "I've only got one of these,  
so two of us are gonna have to share the bed."

Sam snatched the bag. "G'night, Bu!"

Buwaro lay on the leftmost side of the bed, Toby on the right, and  
Thaddeus curled between them.

Buwaro kept his distance from the wyvern. "This isn't what I... Never  
mind." He took off the pendant and gave the picture inside one last  
look before putting it in the sack. He hoped they were okay.

* * *

Meanwhile, Iratu and Azurai lay in bed.

Iratu was tossing and turning, unable to sleep from worry over his son.

Azurai was wide awake as well. "You can't sleep either?"

Iratu turned towards his husband. "Yeah. I'm worried sick over Buwaro.  
I mean, judging by the letter he sent, he seems okay, but I can't help  
worrying about him."

"You'd be a shitty parent if you weren't. As worried as I am for him,  
I know he's a strong kid. But still, I'm scared shitless about all this."

Iratu pulled his husband closer to him. "I know what you mean, I love  
him. I mean, I don't know what I'd be now if you hadn't found him. I  
could've ended up being an alcoholic or something for all I know,  
because I really never cared that much about myself. Him and you give  
me something to care about, something to stop me from becoming that guy I used to be."

"You mean the idiot who took my sarcastic 'we're together so often why  
the fuck don't we get married so I can write you off as a tax deduction' literally?"

Iratu chuckled a bit. "Marrying you was the only thing I did right back then."

Azurai also laughed. "Damn right it was. You were damned insufferable  
back then. Now you're just _slightly_ damned insufferable. But  
yeah, I feel the same way. I'm fucking terrified of what I might've  
been, or what I might be if something happened to Buwaro. You remember Eric?"

"My 5th ex-boyfriend?"

"No, the kid who beat up Buwaro once. Buwaro was pretty fucking stoic  
about it, remember? He just walked in with a black eye and bloody nose  
and didn't seem to give a shit."

Iratu thought for a moment, before suddenly remembering, shocked.

"Yeah, now I remember. You... Became scary. Buwaro and I were scared,  
you actually looked like you were ready to murder someone. You left  
the house and did something to that bully, and... That kid changed. For the worse."

Azurai nodded, squeezing Iratu's arm tightly. "I wrecked that little  
shit, Buwaro said that kid stopped talking to people, and got really,  
really thin. Nobody's ever been stupid enough to hurt my son again,  
but that still scares me, what I did. I'm scared that I might fucking  
kill someone if something happens to him."

"Don't give up on our son, like you said, he's a strong kid. We'll  
take a train to Verdenola, first chance we get. Try to go to sleep."

They stopped talking, and, after a few hours, Azurai eventually fell  
asleep in his husband's arms.

* * *

Cerberus fared no better than his Heavenly counterpart. The infernal  
hound wiped out many of the wraiths, but more and more kept coming,  
and its strength only held out for so long.

Gaia and Syndel decided to work together once more, first sealing off  
Heaven and Hell permanently so that none could get in or out, and  
placing a barrier around Medius to stop the shadowy wraiths from invading it.

Arm in arm, they made their valiant last stand. It was them, or the wraiths.

Millennia later, one of these wraiths somehow found a flaw i the barrier, and broke in through it.

* * *

By and by, days passed, Buwaro, Sam, and Toby sent letters to their  
families, and since they had a return address this time, they got  
replies! Their families were relieved that they were okay.

Buwaro's parents were proud of their son for looking out for his  
friends and working to support them, but rather disappointed that he  
hadn't stopped them from getting into this mess in the first place.

Sam's uncle was rather pissed off at her for dragging two of her  
friends into this mess, but also impressed at how well they'd handled it.

Toby's rather conservative parents were shocked that he'd run off and  
jump freight with a gypsy girl, and a _fire demon_, who was  
raised by a homosexual 'couple', no less!

Toby did his best to paint Sam and Buwaro in a positive light, telling them that just because her  
uncle travelled for a living, that didn't make them gypsies, and the  
demon had accompanied them out of concern for their well-being (which was true, of course).

The next train from Thornwood to Verdenola would, coincidentally,  
depart a day before the play was to start, and the train from  
Verdenola to Thornwood would depart the day after the play.

Sam and Toby saved up almost enough for train tickets home, and Buwaro  
and Sahne had gotten their parts down pat.

Buwaro had also gotten the hang of the scenes with Elanor's papa,  
Jerome (played by a pudgy khamega), and the one where she interrogates  
Anton's sidekick, Klune, about her father's whereabouts.

Ortimor, however, he'd avoided until they'd practiced the other scenes enough.

Ortimor, to Buwaro's surprise, was much less of an overbearing jerk  
this time, actually apologizing for his earlier behavior.

He'd wanted Buwaro to know what it was like to be treated the way  
Anton treats Elanor, so Buwaro would know how to play the role properly. And play it he did.

Eventually, it was time for the actual show to begin.

Buwaro's stomach tied itself into a thousand knots, and his heart made  
a valiant attempt at bursting through his chest as the narrator spoke in a deep, solemn voice.

"_Once upon a time, in a far away land, there was a heavenly prince  
who lived in a shining castle in the sky. The prince was kind,  
generous, and brave, but also reckless._

_One day, a beautiful woman gave him this ultimatum; eaither marry her,  
or she would cause the bodies of the dead to rise, and they would dine on the living._

_The prince sneered at this threat, for surely, she was merely a human._

_How could she hope to manage such a fantastical thing?_

_She warned him not to underestimate her, for she was more powerful than she looked._

_He dismissed her, and she enacted her threat. As the dead ravaged the  
castle, she revealed herself to be a horrifying necromancer, and  
cursed the prince by turning him into a hideous monster and cast him  
out of the heavens, throwing the ruined castle down with him._

_As all curses must have some way to break them, she told him that if  
he could find anyone who would love him, he'd be restored to his former self._

_But who would ever love a Monster?_"

Sam nudged Buwaro. "C'mon, Bu, you can do this! Break a leg (but not yours)!"

The stage was quickly rearranged, the heavenly background replaced  
with scenery for a ruined-looking town, and the orchestra began playing.

Buwaro took a deep breath. Just don't look at the audience until you start singing.

He walked out onto the stage, doing his best to ignore the few people  
who laughed at the fact that he was playing a girl despite being so obviously male.

He heard a familiarly raucous and rough voice coming from the croud.

"_That's my boy!_"

He looked in the direction of the voice, in spite of himself, and saw his dads.

He began to sing.

_In this old town, where I grew up_

_Everything was once beautiful_

_Though a shade of its former self_

_I guess it's enough_

_I spent my childhood days here,_

_this old town holds memories dear_

_This old town I used to love_

The pudgy khamega hobbled onto the stage, pulling a bizarre and  
silly-looking contraption behind him. "Take a look-see at this, Elanor! You know what this is?"

Buwaro, now Elanor, held 'her' chin. "It looks a little bit like a cannon, father."

It really looked nothing like a cannon, it looked more like... A giant  
metal bowl with a big rod in the middle, mounted sideways to a thing with wheels on it.

But no such remark was in the script, and thus Buwaro said nothing about that.

Elanor's father wore an expression of pride. "This here's the Ultra  
Cannon, if my calculations are correct, this baby can fry hundreds of zombies at once with one charge!"

Elanor clasped her hands together. "That'd be amazing, do you think it'll work?"

Elanor's father shrugged. "Who knows? It might, it might not. Things  
hardly ever go right these days, you know." He began to push the contraption off the stage.

After her father left the stage, Elanor sang the next verse.

"_The dead have taken the life from this town_

_Maybe my life, too_

_I want a reason to live_

_I want a care to give_

_I want to do more than just survive_

_I want to feel alive_"

Enter Anton, masked lech extraordinaire. "Bounjour, chérie! It is I,  
Anton, Seeker of Thy Heart!"

Elanor sighed, annoyed. "Good morning, Anton."

"And what, pray tell, would a fine mademoiselle be doing in a hell like this?"

Elanor crossed her arms. "I don't know, you'll have to go ask one."

"Such a declaration of self-deprecation is hardly a fitting attitude  
for someone pretty as you!"

"For the last time, Anton, no means NO."

Anton began to swagger off the stage. "Well, home is where the heart  
is, and I'll have yours some day!"

With Anton gone, Elanor sang the last verse. "_I want to escape this_

_hopeless place_

_I'll even face danger!_

_Break the chains of boredom that bind me_

_Adventure, come find me!_"

Elanor, now Buwaro again, walked off the stage, with much applause  
from the audience that had previously laughed at him, with Daddy  
cheering even louder than before. "**THAT'S MY GIRL!** ... Uh, I mean **THAT'S MY** **BOY!**"

Dad had to cover his ears whenever Daddy yelled like that.  
"He's _our_ boy, shithead. And quit yelling, dammit, my ears hurt like a sonuva bitch."

Buwaro sat down backstage, mopping the sweat from his brow.

Sam ran up to him and hugged him. "That was **AWESOME**, Bu! You  
could've easily made me think you were a really ugly girl with a  
pretty voice! Not that you're ugly, for a demon! For a boy demon, I  
mean, you'd still look ugly as a girl, but as a boy-"

Bu put his hand on her mouth again "Shut up, Sam."

"Sorry. Anyway, you sing beautifully."

"That's what I thought you said."

* * *

Meanwhile, the escaped wraith hurtled towards Medius with astounding  
speed. It was drawn to something far away, and fell towards it.

It was the music, something it hadn't heard for a long time, that was  
attracting it like a moth to a flame. As it got closer, it saw the source of the music.

A theatre.

* * *

The play had gone swimmingly for the last hour or so, and  
Sam, meanwhile, was offstage, saying random things into Bu's magic  
sack to see if anything came out. She'd found several things,  
including a pocket watch, a thermos, a pearl necklace, and even a  
rapier, oddly enough. Bu must have bought this bag used.

The scene was interrupted by a sudden _**CRASH!**_ A huge,  
ugly _Thing_ fell in through the ceiling! That wasn't in the script!

Most of the audience fled in terror, while Bu's dads pushed  
through the screaming crowd and climbed onto the stage to get that  
Thing away from him.

Sam rushed to help them fight it, bringing the sack with her.

A painfully bright light quickly engulfed the area, and Sam, Bu,  
Sahne, Bu's dads, and Ortimor all found themselves on what looked  
like the stage of a surrealist's impression of an opera house.

They were being cheered by an audience that looked more like a  
constantly moving collage of photographs than an actual collection of  
people, while an unseen orchestra began playing crazed melodies.

Bu was the first to speak up, his voice seemed to contort itself  
into the shape of the music, as if he was singing along. "What is this place?"

Ortimor's face began to take the shape of his mask, and he took on the  
shape of a huge Mortori bird. "Best be on your guard, something's going to happen!"

That Thing did happen. Its head was almost entirely taken up by its  
screaming fanged mouth, which was attached to the torso of an  
incredibly fat lady, which was held up by two impossibly skinny legs.  
In place of arms, it had 8 gaudy, ribbon-like tentacles.

Bu's Dad gaped at it in horror. "Holy shit, the hell is that thing?!"  
His words contorted in a similar manner to Buwaro's.

The instant he said that, one of the tentacles grabbed him and flung  
him over the 'audience'.

Bu whipped around toward the audience. "DAD!"

Ortimor swooped under Bu's dad and caught him just in time, flying him  
back over to the stage, where Sahne protected him.

Sam tossed the aforementioned rapier to Bu. "BU! Use this!"

Bu caught it, and sliced one of the tentacles, and then another, and another.

Bu's Daddy tackled the weird Thing with all his might, but it caught him  
with its 5 remaining flesh-ribbons and constricted him slowly.

Sam kicked it in the back of the head, causing it to release him.

Bu, seeing his chance, sliced one of its legs off, and it tipped over.

Bu's Daddy managed to push it away from his son, and gored its back  
with his claws.

It didn't bleed, however. It seemed to go out like a doused flame, and  
their surroundings faded back into what they previously were, the  
theatre now abandoned, save for them, and Ortimor was human again.

Bu's Dad could hardly breathe. "The hell was that?" He collapsed.

* * *

That night, the Baroness sailed under the light of a full bleached-white moon.  
Captain Lazuli undressed in her private chamber, and went to bed,  
dreaming of her hometown in the Dragon Islands Archipelago, Verdenola.

She dreamed lucidly, her dream consisted of her mother playing a tuba  
while their old house burned down, and Talus Fango, Lazuli's 'cabin boy', drowned upside-down in the sky.

She hadn't reached the stage of lucidity that let you control what  
happened in your dreams and do wonderful things like flying over a  
village and pouring hellfire over it, so she simply tried to make  
sense of what was happening.

The burning house was a ghastly specter from her childhood, though her  
mother had never played the tuba a day in her life. What was that about, she wondered.

Talus's bizarre death was what concerned her. Talus had been her best  
(and only) friend since they were kids, the thought of him dying was  
too much for her cold algae-coated heart to bear.

She was rescued by a loud _BAM BAM BAM_ on the door.

She discarded her gratitude for this quickly. "**THE FUCK IS IT? THIS  
HAD BETTER BE GOOD!**"

Tsavo Kaze, her First Mate and lookout, opened the door just a bit.  
"We've arrived at Port Terminus, Captain."

Lazuli immediately got up, got dressed, and ordered everyone off the ship.

After dividing the spoils, they all went their separate ways, Lazuli  
taking a train to Verdenola, arriving the day after the incident at the theatre.

She saw a purple fire-demon boy walking to the train to Thornwood,  
accompanied by two male adult demons, fire and earth, and a human girl and hukai boy.

* * *

Toby clung to Bu. "But what was that thing, Bu?"

Bu didn't pry him off. "I don't know, but I'm sure it's dead, whatever it was."

Bu's Daddy grinned proudly. "You kicked that thing's ass, son! Got that from me, of course!"

Bu's Dad glared at his husband, then laughed in spite of himself. "You  
keep telling yourself that, honey (you shithead)." He patted his son's  
shoulder. "Son, I'm real damn proud of how you handled all that."

Bu smiled. "Thanks, dads."

Sam tapped Bu on the shoulder. "HEY! Isn't someone gonna mention how awesome _I_ was?"

"_No._"

* * *

Back to that autumn morning.

"Pfft, please. Have I EVER gotten you and him in trouble?"

"Yes."

Sam crossed her arms. "Name one time."

"The time when you talked me into freight-jumping and I had to wear a dress and fight that weird thing."

"And we all came out of it just fine."

Buwaro sighed and shook head head. Honestly, that girl's gonna get  
someone killed someday, he thought.


	4. Chapter 4: Better Than I Deserve

After the first one got through, the wraiths kept trying to penetrate  
that same barrier for two years, until several of them found that  
flaw, and began their descent.

* * *

Buwaro's school day wasn't particularly interesting, that day.

At least until, in the middle of Angelic class, right as Mr. Elexion  
had played a sad little song on his (actual) violin for the student  
complaining about having to write an 800 word essay, a loud  
_**CRASH**_ was heard outside the window.

Buwaro looked out the window, dreading what he'd see.

No, it couldn't have happened again, not after he'd just brought up that  
incident with Sam.

But the thing that fell looked very similar to the Thing he'd fought  
two years ago. It looked like a scarecrow princess with a button eyes  
and a V-shaped cut for a mouth, wearing a dress made of thorny vines.

Said thorns rapidly grew all over the town, causing everyone but Buwaro to flee.

Buwaro just stood there, shocked. "No..."

Mr. Elexion jostled Buwaro back to his senses. "Mr. Ricardo-Sydney,  
come on!" He pulled Buwaro by the arm.

Buwaro ran outside with Mr. Elexion and the others. He heard Sam  
yelling "Heee-YAA!" and the sound of some vines being cut.

That idiot.

Buwaro carefully considered whether he should just keep running, or  
try to help Sam. For about three seconds. "One machete!"

Sam was darting from one spot to another as the thorns kept trying to  
strike her, sing-songing "Nyah-nyah! Where are you aiming?" while  
cutting them with a pocket-knife.

A crudely-fashioned wooden golem shoulder-held her from behind.

She struggled to get it off her. "Hey, no fair!" A vine swiftly shot towards her.

Buwaro cut it just in time, and hacked off the golem's arms. "Can't  
you go for an hour without doing something stupid?"

Sam chuckled. "Nope! Anyway, thanks for- LOOK OUT!"

Buwaro's leg was caught by one of the vines, and it quickly wrapped  
around him, and pulled him towards the scarecrow's widening mouth.

Sam kept cutting the vines holding Buwaro, but more of them grew.  
Her face lit up. "BU! BURN IT WITH YOUR FIRE BREATH!"

Buwaro did just that, and the thing screamed as it burned, trying to  
grow to escape the fire, but it burned to cinders.

Buwaro crawled out, covered in soot. And not much else.

Sam stared at him blankly. "... Dude, that's way more of you than I  
ever wanted to see."

"Very funny. At least my magic sack and lucky star are okay." He  
opened up the pendant. "Good thing Dad had this thing fireproofed.  
Heck, even the picture's okay."

Sam began coughing. No, wait, she was... Laughing?

"What's so funny?"

Sam was giggling uncontrollably now. "Look at what your pendant says."

Buwaro shut the pendant, and turned it over. He saw "Our Baby" written in firey letters on it.

He wasn't amused. "_ARE YOU KIDDING ME_? My dads used ancient  
magic to write a tacky message on a family heirloom?!"

Sam smiled so wide that her face risked sticking like that. "Aren't  
you glad they adopted you?"

Buwaro chuckled. "Yeah, I am. I honestly can't imagine what it'd be  
like not to have them. I mean, I'm curious as to what my genetic  
parents were like before they died, but I'm happy with who I got."

And of course, who else should arrive on the scene but Toby?

Toby ran towards them, slowing down, and then panting heavily. "I got  
worried when I couldn't find you with Mr. Elexion and the others  
and... Bu, why are you naked?"

Sam giggled. "He made a bonfire outta that thing, and apparently  
his dads couldn't afford to fireproof his clothes. On the bright side,  
you and me just got a free anatomy lesson."

Buwaro was putting on some clothes he had in his sack. "I am _so_  
glad your parents didn't see that, Toby."

Toby shook his head. "Too bad I did."

**_CRASH!_**

Buwaro whipped around in the direction of the noise. "Again?!"

Toby put 'em up. "I'll help _this_ time, Bu!"

Buwaro rejected that idea with boss-like authority. "Out of the  
question, Toby! Your parents are probably already worried sick!"

Toby crossed his arms. "I've been taking martial arts lessons, Bu. I'm  
coming with you, period."

Sam smiled. "The three amigos gotta stay together, right? Seriously,  
he's just gonna sneak behind if you say no."

Buwaro sighed, shaking his head, arms crossed. "Fine. C'mon!"

As they ran towards the source of the noise, Buwaro couldn't help  
wondering why the hell he always did dangerously stupid stuff like  
this. Did he have some kind of Hero complex or something, always  
having to save the day for others?

Toby addressed the other two, having to puff out his words while  
running. "So, what're we gonna call these things? I mean, we can't  
just keep calling them monsters or other generic stuff, right?"

Sam looked as if she'd come up with the best name ever. "How about Specters?"

Both Buwaro and Toby spoke at the same time. "That'll do!"

They reached the source of the noise.

This Specter was different from the other two. It was a tall, gray,  
bone-thin humanoid sitting in a fetal position, surrounded by a globe  
of glowing letters and symbols.

A huge shadow appeared above them.

Buwaro recognized the one casting it immediately. "Hey, Sakido! Great  
timing, we could use some help, here!"

Toby hid behind Buwaro.

Sam gaped at Sakido. "WOAH, LADY YOU'RE HU-"

Buwaro covered her mouth with his hand. "Shut _**UP**_, Sam!" He uncovered it.

"BLEH! Bu, why do your hands have to be so hairy?!"

Sakido smiled just a bit. "I take it you two must be friends of his."

The pale figure screeched at the four of them, as if it was insulted that they were ignoring it.

Buwaro looked up at Sakido. "Let's chat after we kill this thing."

"Fine by me, today's a day off for me, anyway."

The globe expanded quickly, and a bright light briefly engulfed the area.

They were now somewhere completely different. The sky was now replaced  
by an enormous clock, the hour hand moving to a different number every minute.

The shriveled Specter looked up. Its eyes were black voids, it had no  
lips, and its teeth were decayed in every way that teeth could be. It  
looked very much like a mummified skeleton. It rang a small bell.

Fifty pale, faceless figures dressed in monk's attire suddenly appeared.

The Specter pointed to the sky, then projected a barrier around the area and vanished.

Immediately, the fifty faceless ones rushed at the four-member party.

Buwaro retrieved a cutlass from his bag. "I think we'll call the smaller ones 'Wraiths'."

Sam kicked one of the Wraiths in the face. "Hey, Bu, do the flamey thing again!"

Buwaro glared at Sam while lopping off a Wraith's head. "Uh,  
_hello?_ The only thing worse than being attacked by fifty  
Wraiths is being attacked by a fifty Wraiths that are _on fire_.

Sakido was tossing Wraiths all over the place with her wind magic,  
killing a total of 14 of them. "Is that really how you talk to people, Buwaro?"

Toby had knocked the wind out of a Wraith. "Yeah, he's actually kind of a hardass."

Buwaro tripped one of the Wraiths, and it fell on three others, then  
he skewered them on his sword. Disturbingly, Buwaro grinned. "Anyone  
want a Wraith shish-kebab?"

19 down, 31 to go.

Sam stared at Buwaro. "Are you okay, Bu?" She had the feeling that she wouldn't like the answer.

"I'm fine! Y'know, this is actually kinda fun!" He slashed a Wraith in  
half, then another, and another, and another.

Sam definitely didn't like that answer.

Only 27 left.

Sakido's wind magic splattered another 17.

Buwaro grinned even wider, and sliced, impaled, beheaded, and  
generally mutilated the remaining Wraiths. "Awww, all gone!" he said in a mocking voice.

The Specter reappeared, hands and knees together, head craned despairingly.

Buwaro walked over to it casually. "Game's up!" He cut it to pieces.

The barrier disappeared, and the sky returned to normal.

Sam stood there, horrified. "What the hell was that, just now?!"

Buwaro shurugged, putting the cutlass back in the bag. "Dunno, but it's dead now, right?"

"Not the Specter, you idiot, the way you acted just then! You enjoyed  
that way too much! You honestly had me scared, Bu! That's not like you at all!"

Buwaro had his hand behind his neck. "Haha, er, well... Y'know, it was  
the adrenaline from the fight! We were gonna kill those things anyway, y'know?"

Sakido and Toby simply watched them, both knowing that butting in  
would be a really bad idea unless it escalated. That, and they were  
pretty curious about Buwaro's feelings.

Sam had her arms crossed. "Bu, that wasn't just adrenaline. I'm an  
adrenaline junkie, I admit it, danger's fun for me. You, however, acted like a... A..."

Buwaro also had his arms crossed. "Like a _what_, Sam?" Go ahead,  
Sam, say it. I know what you're thinking.

"A freakin' _psycho!_ Seriously, who the hell says 'who wants  
shish kebab' when they've just impaled four... Uh, things?"

Buwaro had a scowl flicker on his face, for just a second. "What's  
wrong with a little humor to lighten up the situation?"

"It's not the dumb jokes! You were like a wild animal back there, your  
eyes got all red and scary, and you just..." Sam sighed loudly, and  
put her hand over her eye. "Dammit, I'm not gonna get through to you, am I?"

And then Buwaro said it, seeing that Sam wouldn't. "Well, I guess it's just because I'm a demon."

Sam scowled, her mouth now a total-warfare frown. "WHAT?! What does  
being a demon have to do with it?! Look at your dads, and that huge  
lady we met in Verdenola, they're demons! Are you saying they'd do something like that?!"

Toby saw where this was going, and pushed them apart. "Guys! We've got  
something more important to worry about."

Sam's face loosened, just a bit. "And what's that, Toby?"

"Look around."

They looked. Oh, no. How had they not noticed? The town was wrecked  
utterly by the Specters. The school building had apparently caved in,  
and the sidewalks were smashed beyond recognition.

The other buildings didn't fare much better, windows were smashed,  
roofs were either damaged or gone, and entire walls were missing.

Buwaro simply stood there, in numb shock. It couldn't be real, it had  
to be a dream, things like this didn't happen in real life, and things  
like what they fought simply couldn't exist. But there was no denying  
what happened at the theatre.

Wait a minute, what about his parents?! He ran off without a word.

Everyone else followed, knowing that Buwaro shouldn't be left alone  
under circumstances like this.

They arrived at Buwaro's house, which was in just as awful a state as the others.

Buwaro ran frantically into the house. "**DADS! WHERE ARE YOU?!**"  
He checked every room, but he couldn't find them and even  
checked Thaddeus's cage to see if the wyvern was still alive.

The cage was empty, save for a moleskine journal with the words "Dear  
Son" written hastily on the cover. He opened it, hoping this would  
have some kind of clue to his parents' whereabouts.

"_Dear Bu-Bu, if you're reading this, Daddy and I are still looking  
for you. I, your Dad, wrote this._

_There's something you need to know. I've been putting it off for a  
long time, I've written this message in my head more times than I can  
count, but I've never been able to actually tell you._

_Bear with me, this is gonna be a long story._

_First, you should know something. I didn't have a happy childhood. At  
all. My parents were complete shit. Ever wonder why you never had  
'grandparents', growing up? That's why. My father left when I was  
born, and my mother was a bitch. She didn't love me, and made it  
really fucking clear, too. I ran away from her when I was about 13,  
and I'm not gonna bother you with most of the bullshit that came afterward._

_Point is, my life was shit. And figuring out that I was attracted to the "wrong" sex didn't help,  
either. It was considered a disease that needed "treatment", back  
then, so I had to hide it until I was about 19, when me and many  
others finally decided that we weren't gonna take that bullshit anymore.  
It's amazing how fast politics changed after that._

_Then I met your Daddy when I was about 36, in a bar. You can guess what kind. I remember_  
_that he used a really goddamned stupid pick-up line, though I forgot the_  
_exact words he used. I know that he called me "horny". To be fair, it worked,_  
_and we, well, had sex. A lot. I made a sarcastic remark one day that him and I should_  
_get married since we're together so much, and we could write eachother off as tax deductions._

_Your Daddy, being the wonderful dumbass he is, took me literally, and we were hitched the day after._

_I wasn't exactly gung-fuckin'-ho about that at the time, but your Daddy loved it._

_He said he quit his job as a pro-wrestler to be a stay-at-home  
husband. But actually, he was fired for breaking a guy's back by accident. Figures._

_As you know, I'm a blacksmith, and sometimes my customers need their  
orders delivered to them. Nowadays, I just have someone else do it, but a long time ago, I did it myself._

_My journey to and from where these particular customers, a young  
couple, lived wasn't pleasant, to understate the fuck out of it._

_My wagon had broken a wheel, my horses ran off, and I had to walk all  
the way there, I'm guessing it was somewhere between 30 to 50 miles  
there. And the fact that I hadn't packed enough provisions (or money  
to buy any, what the hell was I thinking) meant that I was also fucking starving as well._

_Simply put, I was tired, miserable, and yet I kept going anyways._

_When I finally got there, they told me that I had gotten their order  
wrong, and that they weren't gonna pay for such a piece of shit._

_I... Lost it. I don't remember what I did to the woman, but the man, I  
seized his neck, and crushed it, and it wasn't until his heart finally  
stopped beating that I realized what I'd done._

_I looted their house for any food and money I could take with me._

_And then I saw a nursery. In the crib slept a purple-furred fire  
demon, unaware of what I'd just done._

_Yes, that was you, son!_

_I saw you, and knew immediately what I had to do. I had to give you  
the childhood I wish I had. I took you home with me, and your Daddy  
never asked how or where I found you, he was too happy that he had a son, now._

_I don't regret a damn thing I did that day. You've made my life worth living._

_You're the best son a parent could ask for, and you're better than I deserve._

Buwaro screamed, his fire breath burning the book to cinders. "It  
can't be true! What kind of sick joke is this?!" He fell to his knees,  
sobbing. Why did everything have to suddenly go wrong all in one day?  
What had he done to deserve this?

Sam ran into the room, panic in her voice. "BU! Are you okay?! What  
happened?" She picked him up by the arm, showing surprising physical  
strength for her size and age. "C'mon, Bu. Let's get outta here."

* * *

Sam almost had to carry Bu, he was so depressed he could barely walk.  
Sakido was too busy looking for any other survivors from above to do it.

She couldn't blame him, either. His hometown was destroyed, and his  
parents and pet were nowhere to be found.

And the way she'd gotten onto him about his behavior during the fight  
against that last whatever-it-was probably didn't help, either.

Maybe demons really did handle adrenaline differently. They handled  
booze differently, so why not? It'd make sense if fire demons got more  
violent about it than most people.

Still, Bu was freakin' scary back there. For a minute, he was like one  
of those psycho serial killers in plays who always have some witty  
thing to say as they're cutting you up.

But... Bu'd never do something like that to _people_. She knew  
that much. He was like his dad, a 24/7 grouch who'd never hurt anyone  
(who didn't have it coming), right?

Sakido landed back on the ground. "I found Mr. Elexion with several  
kids near the school. I also found an angel girl just behind there."

She pointed to a building.

Sam let Bu sit down. "You guys stay there while I do the talking. I'll holler if something's wrong."

She found the girl curled up behind the building,  
and made an effort to saunter over to her like nothing was wrong.  
But really, she just looked goofy. "Hey, how're you doin'?"

The girl shot her a frosty glare, like Sam was some kind of disgusting insect.

Looks like the casual approach wouldn't work. Sam tried the serious  
one. "Are you okay? Me and several other survivors are looking for,  
well, survivors. What's your name?"

The girl got up, composed herself, and spoke as if she were royalty  
addressing a peasant. "I am Suizahn Kieri. I am searching for my  
brother, Suizahn Kazai, have you seen him?"

Sam could already tell she was gonna be a real piece of work. "No, but  
my friend saw some kids with Mr. Elexion, I could go ask where they were again."

Suizahn Kieri shook her head. "That will not be necessary, I just left his group to look by myself."

"Well, me and my friends are looking for family members, too, if you wanna join us."

Ms. Suizahn scanned Sam with her eyes, as if considering whether  
following this ragamuffin would be worth it.

Sam kept trying. "You saw those things and what they did, didn't you?  
My friends and I killed two of them, but we don't know if there are  
more out there. You'll want some backup if you have to fight one."

Suizahn nodded. "Very well, bring them here."

"Sure thing!" Sam ran and beckoned them over.

She came back, and introduced them. "Everyone, this is Suizahn Carrie-"

"Kee-AIR-ee" Kieri corrected.

"Right, Suizahn Kee-AIR-ee, this is Buwaro Ricardo-Sydney, Toby  
Wheatley, and Sakido Nakajima, and my name's Samantha Kailum, call me Sam."

* * *

Toby recognized the angel immediately.

It was that girl whose name nobody at school (not even the teachers,  
except Mr. Elexion) could pronounce, so they just called her "Snowy"  
because of her unusually pale complexion, even for an angel.

She wasn't a bad person, just stuck-up.

Snowy looked up at Sakido. "Have you found a boy who resembles me? His name is Kazai."

Sakido shook her head. "You and Mr. Elexion's group were the only ones we found in this town."

Toby had an idea, he worked up the courage to say it. If he could  
fight that Specter, he could say some words. "Guys, why don't we split  
up into teams and look in different towns?" That wasn't hard.

Everyone looked at him. In that split second, he wondered whether he'd  
said something stupid. Oh god, what if he had? What if-

Sam slapped him on the back. "That's a great idea, Toby!" She put her  
arm around his shoulder. YES! He blushed and his heart made a valiant  
attempt to ram its way through his chest, as he grinned so wide that his face  
risked sticking like that.

He had a crush on Sam, he had it real bad, and he darn well knew it.

Had he not been in la-la land, he would've heard Sam and the others  
discussing how the teams would be divided.

There were five of them, so it was either have one team of three, and  
another of two, or have two teams of two, and leave one person alone.

It was decided that the former course would be taken. Bu, Sam and Toby  
would be the Three Amigos (as usual), leaving Sakido and Snowy to  
do some aerial searching.

They decided to go to Verdenola first, and Toby was finally forced out  
of his love-stupor when they asked if they could use his parent's boat to get there.

He came to his senses. "Uh, sure."

So they took it there, and Toby had to have the essentials repeated to  
him, because he missed it all the first time.

* * *

Verdenola wasn't quite as wrecked, but still full of panicked people who  
had survived the Specter attacks.

Lazuli sure as hell wasn't panicking.

The Specters had attacked Verdenola, too, and she was ecstatic to fight them.

Her 2-year thirst for blood-spilling had been quenched at long last, she was ALIVE again.

Now all she needed was to find her partner-in-crime, Talus. And she had a hunch on where to find him.

* * *

Sam, Toby, and Buwaro searched all over the place, asking people if  
they'd seen any of the people they were looking for.

The only lead they could find was that Buwaro's dads had supposedly  
been seen heading towards Junglira, the next island to the east.

They set sail that day.


	5. Chapter 5: The Gayest City

On the boat to Junglira, Buwaro had plenty of time to think about what he'd discovered in that journal.

He had recognized Dad's handwriting immediately, and the journal  
addressed him as Bu-Bu, something most people wouldn't know to do.

And the anecdote about Dad's accidental proposal to Daddy definitely  
matched what Daddy had told him one time.

All signs pointed to the journal being authentic.

Still, he had a hard time accepting that Dad had done that. And Dad  
never showed any remorse for it, either! He was _happy_ that he  
murdered his son's blood parents! What kind of monster does that?!

But Dad wasn't a monster. If he was, Buwaro would be dead, too.

Dad loved him, and he'd shown it many times before, like that time he  
skipped work the day Buwaro had broken his leg when he slipped on an  
icy sidewalk, and he and Daddy spent hours by his bedside, telling him stories to cheer him up.

Now that he thought about it, it was telling that the villains in  
Dad's stories always met grisly ends that he'd happily describe in detail.

It was also telling that Buwaro actually liked those parts, despite  
(or maybe because of) the fact that they obviously grossed out Daddy.

Like father, like son, perhaps?

Another thing that worried him was whether Daddy knew what was in that  
journal. Hadn't he ever wondered just _how_ Buwaro's blood parents had died?

Knowing Daddy, this was very unlikely. He was a great parent, just not  
someone who'd plan ahead or think things through, and questions like that just complicated things.

Then again, that could also be considered his strong suit as a parent.

Buwaro was _his son_, bloodlines be damned!

And Dad clearly felt the same way! Maybe raising Buwaro at least  
started out as a form of penance, but he loved his son with all his blackened charcoal heart!

It was settled, Buwaro would find his dads, and they'd be a family again, just like before!

... Right?

* * *

Sam noticed that Bu's mood seemed to improve over the course of the two-hour voyage.

When they finally arrived, he wasn't exactly happy (since when was  
he?), but his face showed the kind of determination that _got stuff_  
_done_. He'd be okay, for now.

Now, about where they were!

Junglira was basically an island smaller than Terrugon (where  
Thornwood and Verdenola were), but big enough to have a couple of  
thriving seaside towns next to a jungle that took up most of the island.

One cool thing about said towns was that they were built [i]on[/i] the  
water rather than close to it, either with stilts, or by floating the  
buildings themselves. Merfolk often visited, because of this.

Buwaro knew how to swim, but that didn't make him any less visibly  
nervous walking around town, and getting around on canoes. Well, he  
_was_ a fire demon, so Sam figured that not getting wet was probably a big priority for him.

The locals were mostly Khamega, so the people that the quintet were  
looking for would be pretty easy to spot.

Toby's reaction to seeing Merfolk for the first time was priceless.

"Muh... Muh... Muh..."

Having his parents go missing was probably the best thing that could happen to that kid.

Merfolk were pretty weird-looking to anyone seeing them for the first  
time, and hearing them chatter like dolphins when speaking above water  
was even more chatter they sure did, Sam had a hard time getting info out of  
most of them, mainly because she couldn't get a freakin' word in, the way they gabbed incessantly.

She decided to try talking to _one_ more mermaid before giving up  
on the Merfolk race in general. "Excuse me!"

This particular mermaid was basically white and green all over, her  
"hair" looked a lot like how Kieri's would look if she dyed it that color. "Yes?"

Sam took the fact that this girl hadn't started spouting a fountain of  
nonsense the minute she was addressed as a good sign. "I'm looking for  
my uncle, his name's Cliff Sinclair, he's got brown hair, a stubbly  
beard, and he's usually smoking, have you seen him?"

The mermaid paused for a few seconds, apparently trying to remember if  
she had. "Is he an alchemist?"

Sam perked up. "Yeah! Do you know where he went?" Maybe this wasn't hopeless, after all!

"I believe I saw him going to the green place to gather landweeds.  
I'll pay attention and see if I can find him. If you ever need to find me, my name is Marina."

"I'm Sam! Samantha Kailum. My friends are looking for people, too. Ask  
people if they know an Azurai, Iratu, or Kazai."

"I will do that."

They shook hands. Well, hand and hand-ish appendage.

* * *

Suizahn Kieri had been silently working out the roles everyone on the team filled.

Kailum seemed to be the leader, or at least the one who did the talking.

Ricardo-Sydney, he was good at combat, judging by the way they had  
talked on the boat about how he had fought a Specter earlier. They  
seemed to trust him for some reason, so she assumed he had some other  
vital skill that no one had mentioned.

Wheatley was apparently kept around to defuse any tension that  
sprouted from having two demons on board.

Nakajima and Suizahn both filled the same role of aerial searching.

Nakajima seemed relatively calm and quiet for a demon. Of course, she  
was a wind demon, so that was expected. What was her motive in all  
this? Suizahn knew better than to assume altruism.

An unusual search party, but she'd have to make do.

Her brother's life was potentially at stake.

* * *

As Buwaro, hot and sweaty, hacked his way through the foliage with a  
machete (hey, that rhymed!), the rest of the search party close  
behind, he couldn't shake this bizarre feeling that the jungle itself  
was watching them, like it wanted them gone.

The jungle's thick green roof barely let in any light, and the thick,  
beautiful foliage threatened to suffocate them.

And there was always something just out of sight that could kill them,  
whether it was a shining poisonous plant, a colorful venomous insect  
or frog, or any number of wild animals.

He had to learn to look _through_ the jungle, not at it.

Sam appeared to love it, though Buwaro suspected that she was afraid,  
too, and eager to find her uncle and get out.

Buwaro wondered if his dads were in there, somewhere, looking for him.

But that would be absurd, right? Surely Dad at least would have enough  
sense to know his son wouldn't go there, right?

Except that, presently, he _was_ there.

Why was he risking his life to help Sam find her uncle? Mr. Sinclair  
didn't matter to him in the least, he certainly didn't miss the old curmudgeon.

Buwaro knew the answer the minute he asked the question. Because Sam  
would've done, well, actually she _was_ doing exactly the same thing for him.

He hoped they'd find whoever the hell was in there, because it took  
all the restraint he could muster not to burn down the place with all the bugs on him.

He was gonna give Mr. Sinclair a piece of his mind when they found hi-

Sam pointed ahead, laughing with relief. "THERE HE IS!"

Oh, well that's nice.

Mr. Sinclair turned around, holding some weird-shaped plants in a bag.  
"Well, looks like you saved me the trouble of looking for you, after all."

Sam had her arms crossed. "Looking for me, yeah, right. Like I'd  
totally wander into the middle of a jungle."

"You're in the middle of a jungle right now, actually."

"Looking for you."

Cliff showed a hint of a smile, just for a split-second. "Fair enough. Care  
to explain what these people are doing here?"

"After you explain what _you're_ doing here."

Cliff pocketed the bag, and reached into his pocket for a cig, but  
then he remembered where he was. "I was looking for the last few  
ingredients to make a Tracker's Map of the Dragon Island Archipelago,  
figuring it'd be easier to find you that way."

Sam showed some skepticism. "And you didn't think to look in Thornwood? Y'know, where we were?"

"I looked for two days."

Now she was just confused.

Toby chimed in. "But we only spent about 48 minutes in that Specter's  
barrier. It looked about the same time of day when we-"

A revelation suddenly hit Buwaro, Sam, Toby, and Sakido like a rock to the skull.

Buwaro was the first to say it. "That clock only had an hour hand, and  
it moved every minute. Maybe every minute we spent in that barrier was  
an hour to everyone else."

Toby gasped. "That would explain why everything was ruined so quickly,  
and why almost everyone had left by then! The Specter left us to fight  
its Wraiths, and then wreaked havoc for two days, long enough for  
people to start looking for their loved ones elsewhere!"

Buwaro also realized why Dad had left that diary there. It wasn't  
because he thought Buwaro was still in town, it was because he thought Buwaro might come back.

Cliff stepped forward. "Wait, what are these things you're talking about?"

Sam answered him. "They're those things that attacked Thornwood and  
Verdenola. We call the bigger ones Specters, and the smaller ones Wraiths."

"And you're saying you fought one of those things?!"

"Two Specters, and about twenty-something Wraiths, actually. I kicked  
one of 'em right in the face, and Bu went to town on 'em, he was  
slicing those things in half and skewering 'em like a shish-kebab!  
Then we formed a search party, which was Toby's idea." She gestured proudly toward Toby, who blushed.

Wait, Sam was _praising_ Buwaro's behavior, now? She was obviously  
trying to impress Mr. Sinclair, especially trying to make Buwaro and Toby look cool.

Buwaro addressed Mr. Sinclair seriously. "Sir, have you seen my dads anywhere arou-"

_**CRASH!**_

Suizahn revealed her halo, and ran towards Buwaro. "Hand me a weapon, demon! I can fight, too!"

Buwaro retrieved his cutlass, and handed it over.

She looked at it like it was a cheap kitchen knife. "Inferior crafting, but it will suffice."

Some invisible _thing_ suddenly picked up Sam, only letting go  
when she kicked it in what she presumed were its teeth, it apparently  
reeled back and knocked Cliff just outside where its barrier would be.

The jungle began to blur, like rain smudging a chalk drawing, as that  
thing apparently rammed Sakido right in the stomach, knocking her down.

Sam immediately came up with a plan. "Bu, Toby! Use your ears and  
noses! You can't see it, but you can still hear and smell it! I'll try to distract it!"

Buwaro tried to pick out its scent. It smelled like ash and sun-dried mud, with a bit of rotting fruit.

He judged by the kind of sounds that it made that it was a pretty damn big thing, whatever it was.

He swung his machete in the direction the scent and sound came from.

He felt the blade run down its side with a satisfying SNICK!

To his surprise, this Specter actually bled, its blood was the color of a fresh bruise.

Buwaro immediately went to town on it, hacking away at its skin with  
bloodthirsty ecstasy. "Follow the blood trail, guys!"

Throughout history, demons have had a reputation of being bloodthirsty  
monsters who enjoy nothing more than the visceral euphoria of gutting something.

Buwaro's ancestors, presuming that they'd lived up to that reputation,  
would've likely been very proud at that moment.

Kieri followed suit, attacking it without relish.

Naturally, the bloodied thing wasn't gonna take that sitting down, it  
thrashed about violently, tossing Buwaro into the air.

Kieri summoned her wings, and flew skyward to catch him.

There was no moment where they looked into one another's eyes, and saw  
something special. Instead, she caught him and then unceremoniously  
plopped him back onto his feet, and they began attacking it again.

Toby ran over to Sakido, who was just managing to get back up. "Miss  
Nakajima, can you still throw that thing with your magic?"

She got on her feet. "I can try."

"Good, try to toss it right over..." He pointed to a particularly bare patch of ground. "There! I have an idea."

Sakido mentally prepared herself to cast it.

Unlike other races, demons can only use magic when under stress, or  
experiencing a severely negative emotion.

Back in the Great War, using too much at once had the terrible  
consequence of causing a demon to change into a 'berserk' form,  
killing everyone around them, then dying. This, and the ability to use  
Dark magic, disappeared due to lack of exposure to Hell's evil.

She took aim at the streams of blood that Buwaro was causing to run  
when they began dripping over the spot Toby pointed out. "EVERYONE GET BACK!"

They all got out of the way, as she unleashed a intense gust of wind.

Toby punched the ground, and a large Terra Spike appeared on the spot where it would land.

The spike ran right through the Specter's back, and came out through  
what was evidently its stomach, the blood gushing, then forming a cobalt web along the body.

The Specter screamed in unearthly tones, writhing and convulsing  
wildly. It then revealed itself, it resembled a gigantic skinned  
chameleon, its spinning eyes an epileptic circus of neons.

Buwaro finished it off, beheading it.

The environment began to return to normal, and they saw Cliff again,  
who was bewildered at having them all reappear in front of him just as  
suddenly as they had was disappeared.

Buwaro was holding the severed head like it was an enormous fish he'd  
just caught, showing it off. "Taken care of, Mr. Sinclair!" He grinned proudly.

Duster fluttered over to Kieri. "Heyyyyyy, pretty dame!"

She swatted him away. "Away from me, lech!"

"Yow! Rejected!"

Sam was clapping. "Awesome plan, Toby! That thing sure didn't see _that_ coming!"

Toby took one look at the results of said plan, then ran off to go throw up.

* * *

Later, after the battle was over, they went to a local bathhouse to  
freshen up, met with Miranda, then went to discuss their plans over dinner at the Casa del Pescado.

Having finished his steak, Buwaro spoke first. "Have you seen my dads, Mr. and Mrs. Sinclair?"

Miranda thought for a minute. "I think so, one of them has a broken  
horn and cusses a lot, and the other's a big scythe-tailed loudmouth, right?"

Buwaro chuckled. "Yep, pretty much!"

"Well, I remember seeing them at the dock, talking about going to Barracalo."

Buwaro sighed. "Of course. At least they're thorough in looking for  
me. What about Toby and Kieri?"

"That's Kee-AIR... Wait, you got my name right!" Kieri giggled. First  
time in a while that someone had actually bothered to get her name  
right. "And I apologize for calling you 'demon' earlier, I'd forgotten your name."

"It's Bu-WAR-o Ree-CAR-do Sid-NEE." He also laughed a bit.

Miranda smiled. " Anyway, I didn't see Tony's parents, or Kieri's brother. Sorry I couldn't help there."

Toby's ears drooped. "Oh. Thanks anyway, Mrs. Sinclair."

Buwaro rubbed him on the head affectionately. "We'll find them, I promise."

_Now_ she understood why they had him on the team.

* * *

Lazuli finally arrived in Barracalo.

She had a feeling Talus would be here, she'd already run into one big  
moron and his sailor-mouthed friend (possibly boyfriend, knowing  
_their_ generation) chasing a red Wright Wyvern, so his kind must be attracted to this  
was a small city, but it was still way too fucking big for its britches.

It was incredibly noisy, crowds of people parading from place to place  
as if their life depended on smelling _every_ goddamn perfume pumped  
into the air, or seeing just how many flavors of ice cream that shop over there had.

Okay, so if she were Talus, where would she spend most of her time here?

She found him getting kicked out of a bar, passing out on the pavement. Naturally.

A random lady ran up to her, a bouquet of flowers in her hand. "You like these? Only one Ma-"

Lazuli punched her damn lights out.

* * *

The next morning, Sam jostled Buwaro awake. "C'mon, lazy bum! Wake up!"

Buwaro yawned. "Sam, why do you keep doing that?" He was used to it by  
now, but 2 years ago, he would've gotten on her case about it.

"We're here, Bu! C'mon, up an' at 'em!"

Buwaro got out of the boat, and started walking towards the city.  
He gaped. "WOAH, GUYS, THIS PLACE IS HU- Mmph!"

Sam had covered Buwaro's mouth, giggling. "Shut _UP_, Bu! Now  
y'know how it feels, huh?" She uncovered it.

Buwaro laughed good-naturedly. "Okay, yeah, that _is_ annoying. Sorry for doing that."

"It's alright, just don't do it again."

"I can't guarantee that."

Cliff set up shop, while Duster flew off in search of dames.

Miranda was working on the Tracker's Map. "This could take a while,  
so I think you should start looking for them now."

Buwaro nodded. "Right. Sam, Toby, you stay by me and look for my dads, and Toby's parents. Sakido, Ms. Suizahn-"

Kieri put her hand up. "Please, call me Kieri, you're one of the few who say it right."

"Right, Kieri, you two do the aerial scouting. We'll meet here in an hour, sound good?"

They all agreed.

The city was apparently the #1 tourist trap in the Archipelago, it was no wonder his dads thought he'd come here!

All sorts of delightfully tacky merchandise and sweets galore were  
sold here, and damned if he wasn't curious about the Secret flavor  
that Ms. Cow's Ice Cream Shop proudly declared on its window!

This town was well-maintained, but obviously hadn't been "updated" in  
decades. The trio had a good laugh at the old-timey sign unironically  
proclaiming Barracalo to be "The Gayest City in the Archipelago!"

Sam ribbed Buwaro. "Hey, Bu! Maybe _that's_ why your dads came here!"

Buwaro was anxious about finding his dads, of course he wanted to, but  
he was still worried, now that he knew the awful truth about Dad.

He loved his Dad, but still... Finding out that one of the two people  
who lovingly raised you as their own also happened to be the one who  
murdered your blood parents in the first place isn't exactly something you shrug off.

Oh, sure, he pushed it to the back of his mind enough to keep himself  
sane, but it still came up, and didn't become any less painful.

Sam waved her hand in his face. "Bu? Helloooooo, is there a Buwaro in there?"

Buwaro snapped back into the present. "Oh, sorry, just... Worried about my dads."

"Hey, no problem, I bet Toby feels the same way, right?"

Toby nodded his head silently.

* * *

Toby was anxious about finding his parents.

Of course he loved them, but... The awful, selfish part of him didn't want to find them.

It wasn't that he wanted anything bad to happen to them, but finding  
them would probably mean that his little adventure with Sam and Bu  
would come to an abrupt end. He'd have to go home, and his life would be dull again.

Then he remembered, he didn't have a home, now. It was gone. Maybe his  
parents were, too. Why hadn't he thought to look where his home was?!

They could be dead by now, for all he knew!

* * *

Buwaro knelt down and hugged Toby. "We'll find 'em, I promise."

Poor kid, he probably just wanted to find his parents and go home.

He then remembered, as he tried to comfort Toby, that neither of them had a home anymore.

Thornwood was pretty much ruined, and nobody'd be willing to risk  
going back there, not after those Specters attacked.

The residents of Junglira were lucky that he and the others had dealt  
with that Specter before it had a chance to reach any of the villages there.

He hoped he wouldn't have to deal with another one of those things, at least not for a while.

* * *

They looked all day, and by became twilight, most of the people had  
left. The place was now almost completely silent, save for the few people who were headed home late.

Buwaro had decided to look just one more hour by himself while the others went to bed.

He'd looked for a while, now having to use the lights of his eyes to  
see, then his nose suddenly picked up a familiar scent. It smelled like charcoal and smoke.

It couldn't be... Could it?

Buwaro began running towards the source of the scent. "DAD?!"

Azurai turned around, his eyes glowing as well. He smiled, looking  
happier than he had in a long time. "SON! It's really you this time,  
right?! I decided to stay an extra hour to look for you, damn good thing I did!"

Buwaro ran to hug his Dad, then remembered what he had done, and slowed down, and stood in front of him.

Azurai seemed worried about the fact that his son wasn't crushing his ribcage right now.

If Buwaro didn't address this now, there would always be a hint of  
doubt. He didn't want to talk about it, but he had to. His expression  
became grave. He fought to keep himself composed, and spoke in a  
monotone. "Dad... I read the diary you left behind at the house."

Azurai's expression was difficult to read. After a minute, he finally spoke. "I see."

"Does Daddy know about what happened?"

"I never told him."

Buwaro couldn't look his Dad in the eyes. "... Why did you do it?" A  
bit of emotion began to show in his voice. "How could you do something like that?"

Azurai remained silent.

"And why did you take me in? Why did you want me, if you hated my blood parents so much?"

Azurai spoke hesitantly. "Because... You deserved better than being left to die."

Buwaro was getting close to tears. "Would you... Would you do it again, if you could redo that night?"

"Yes, I would. I'm evil person, son, and I understand if you  
hate me now that you know that."

"... I don't." He hugged his Dad. _Now_ there was ribcage-crushing.  
"You and Daddy are the best parents I could ever ask  
for, I could never hate you!" He could hardly breathe or see now, he  
was sobbing so hard. "I'd always joked that you were evil, and maybe  
you are, but you're a good Dad, and I still love you."

"I love you too, son."

An incredibly huge and raucous voice called out. "_HONEYYYY! C'MON,  
WE'LL LOOK FOR HIM SOME MORE TOMORROW!_" He walked towards the two  
of them. "C'mon, it's dark out, we'll look for Bu-Bu later." He began to walk back.

"Uh, _hi_, Daddy."

"Hi, son. ... Wait..." He stopped, and turned around slowly.

"Hi, Daddy. Found me, yet?"

He picked them both up, and squeezed the wind out of 'em. "**SON! YOU'RE OKAY!**"

Buwaro gasped for air. "I'm also suffocating and going deaf."

He put them both down, setting for kneeling down and wrapping his arms  
behind them. "Sorry, got a little carried away."

Buwaro laughed, hugging his Daddy's huge neck. "You really are hopeless without Dad, aren't you?"

Iratu guffawed. "Not completely! I saved his dumb ass several times  
while we were looking for you!" He grinned smugly at his husband. "Ain't that right, sweetie?"

Azurai reluctantly nodded. "Yeah, fine, you did. Anyway, let's get  
back inside, my ass is freezing out here."

Buwaro let go. "Hey, how about you come stay with Sam and Toby? They  
helped me get here and find you! Sakido's there, too, and there's this  
girl called Kieri who's looking for her brother. C'mon, you gotta help  
us find him, and Toby's parents, it's the least we could do!"

Iratu grinned. "Sure thing, son! Lead the way!"

Azurai huffed, smoke blowing from his nose. "Hey, do I get any fuckin' say in this?"

Iratu ruffled his husband's hair. "Nope! Now, should I tell him what happened while we were looking for him, or will you?"

"You tell him."

"Alright, then! Well..."

The worst was over, he'd found his dads, and it would only get better after this, right?

...Right?


	6. Chapter 6: Do You Feel Bad About It?

Iratu thought for a second about where to begin. "After you went to  
school, your Dad went to work, and I took Thaddeus for a walk. Then I  
met an old friend of mine who happened to be in town that day, and we  
began to do some catching up. I had Thaddeus tied to a fence post, but  
he got away, and as I went to chase him, I heard this loud _**CRAAAAAASH**!_"

Buwaro and Azurai had their ears covered. Whoops, must have made that  
a little too loud. Iratu didn't know the volume of his own voice.

Which was rather funny, since he could hear so well, he caught  
Azurai's entire conversation with Buwaro.

He'd pieced together that Azurai had likely murdered Buwaro's blood  
parents, kept it a secret for about 15 years, and now Buwaro was in on it, too.

Itatu figured that they'd tell him when they were ready, and he'd have  
his own feelings on the situation sorted out by then.

What was he talking about again? Oh, yeah. "Sorry. Anyway, I ran  
towards the source of the sound, but then I heard another-"

Buwaro and Azurai covered their ears again, so Iratu naturally had to  
live up to their expectations, like always. "**_CRAAAAASH_**!" He  
tried to make that one a bit less loud.

Buwaro gingerly uncovered his ears. "Daddy, don't do any more sounds like that. _Please_."

"Sorry. Anyway, I heard it, and by the time I got to where it was, the  
thing that I assume had made that noise, it was this thing that looked  
kinda like a skinny naked man, had all sorts o' letters and stuff floating around 'im."

Buwaro looked surprised. "Me, Sam, Toby and Sakido all fought that thing in its barrier!"

"Really? Huh, I thought me and your Dad had killed it when it  
disappeared. Anyway, people were running away from it, and your Dad  
and I fought it, boy, did that thing fight dirty, it had already  
killed about sixty people, and turned the bodies into monsters, so we  
were outnumbered!" Iratu had been horrified, but he decided not to mention that now.

Buwaro stopped walking. "Wait... How many of those monsters did you fight, and what did they look like?"

"About ten, the others disappeared when we beat their boss. They all  
looked like gray, faceless men wearing monk outfits."

The poor kid looked like he'd learned his Dad's secret all over again.

"Oh my god... The monsters we fought that day looked exactly like  
that..." He simply stood there, letting it sink in. "... Can we  
continue this tomorrow, when I'm not so tired, and everyone can hear  
this?" He looked like he could barely stand.

Iratu picked up and carried his son. "Sure."

Azurai remained silent on the way to the wagon, not even complaining about the cold.

* * *

Buwaro had a lot on his mind, that night.

He now had to accept that Dad was evil, had been evil the entire time,  
and had lied to him _and_ Daddy all his life.

And Buwaro had trusted him!

Dad had been someone he went to for advice, or when he simply needed someone to talk to.

Now Buwaro could never completely trust him. What else had Dad been hiding?

And finding out that the fifty Wraiths he'd massacred were once people also horrified him.

Was it just that one Specter that did that, or were all Wraiths once people?

And what were the Specters, and where did they come from? Were they once people, too?

And how would Daddy feel if he found out that his husband was remorseless murderer?

Daddy would've never even suspected it, he wasn't the kind of person  
to think too much about anything.

Daddy was exactly what he seemed to be.

* * *

Iratu did his best to fake being asleep.

He didn't want his husband suspecting anything. So he faked oblivious  
slumber, laying flat on his back, cradling his husband in his arms.

People had always assumed that, because he was a massive and clumsy  
earth demon, he was... Well, simple.

He'd given up on trying to convince them otherwise decades ago,  
instead donning a facade to satisfy them.

People found the dumb persona he wore endearing, loveable, and even  
reassuring. People trusted the mask.

He had to play the role of the big, ditzy teddy bear, because that's what everyone wanted.

This was one case where said mask was horribly inconvenient, as he  
wanted to ask his husband and son what they were hiding from him.

But they needed him to play the unsuspecting clown.

That's what they wanted. That's what he'd give them, like always.

* * *

Azurai couldn't sleep that night, the only reason he wasn't tossing  
and turning being that he was sandwiched between his husband's  
massive, warm, fuzzy arms and chest.

As aggravating as his husband's shitheadedness often was, it was also  
oddly reassuring. Iratu never changed, no matter how much everything else did.

Iratu was just so kind, reassuring, and trustworthy. But also a loud,  
clumsy dumbass. Despite that, he was a better person than Azurai could ever hope to be.

Azurai still felt no remorse for what he did, and he fucking admitted  
it. He knew something was wrong with him, and it scared him shitless.  
He knew he wasn't an outright sociopath, he was perfectly capable of  
empathy.

He'd seen, well, _felt_ it in action many times. Most of  
said times were directed towards Buwaro or Iratu.

He had empathy, it was just... Narrow in scope.

He was, however, all sorts of fucked up. And a part of him, for some  
reason, _wanted_ to feel awful about what he did, but the Azurai  
who murdered an innocent young couple was completely alien to the  
Azurai who raised said couple's child.

So, he felt bad about not feeling bad. That could arguably count,  
except that real remorse involved some amount of regret. He didn't  
regret it at all, he didn't care about that couple.

They were assholes anyway, and he'd kill them again to keep Buwaro for a son.

He knew that was selfish, but he fuckin' loved his son that much.

Azurai was an evil parent, but he'd raised a damn good kid, even if he was essentially stolen.

He finally rolled over and buried his face in his husband's chest,

Iratu's scent of dry earth and crushed leaves calming his nerves  
enough to finally go to sleep.

* * *

Sakido had a hard time talking to people. Everyone seemed to find her scary, for some reason.

Part of her wished she was something else, a mermaid, a jakkai, even  
an angel would be better. Not that being a demon was a _bad  
_thing, per se (it had its perks), but she hated how everyone seemed to avoid her because of it.

So she was essentially forced into the quiet, "cool" role. And she'd played it rather well.

Well, screw that! Tomorrow, she was gonna get to know these people she  
was presently travelling with, or die trying!

* * *

Lazuli regretted her two-year retirement.

She decided that night that she was gonna round up a new crew, and go  
on what may be her last expedition. She was pretty much an old hag by  
now, but she had plenty of fight left in her! Fuck anyone who says  
that she can't be a captain again!

If anything, her years on the sea made her more qualified to sail than  
anyone else in the entire goddamned archipelago!

With Talus by her side, anything was possible. Just as soon as that  
dumb fuck wakes up. Then these old sailors would plunder again.

* * *

Toby had mixed feelings about all this. He wanted his parents to be  
okay, but he was also selfishly glad that they'd gone missing. The  
search for them promised to be the adventure of a lifetime, and he wanted it to last.

He'd lived a sheltered life for too long. Sure, he had scratches and  
insect bites all over him, and he ached in several places, but he  
considered those to be proof that this particular day had been seized.

That, and he wanted to spend as much time as possible with Sam. He  
knew he had a crush on her, a huge one. He couldn't admit it, how would she react?

He'd have to settle for being her sidekick. Possibly forever.

* * *

Sam could hardly sleep, she was so excited from what they'd done that day.

When was the next Specter gonna attack? She could take 'em! She'd give  
'em the ol' one-two and make 'em regret being born!

She was also glad that Bu had found his dads. Now they could be a  
family again, _and_ go on all sorts of cool adventures together!

Iratu was pretty cool, he was like a huge scythe-tailed mole-dog, and  
he was really strong, too! She remembered how he took on that Specter  
two years ago, now that was awesome.

Azurai reminded her of Uncle Cliff, but with even dirtier language. He  
looked like a jerk, but Bu was so happy to see him, so he's obviously not all bad.

Sakido was kinda cool, too, all quiet and scary. Plus, she had those  
huge wings! She was apparently friends with Bu, so maybe she's only pretending to be scary.

Kieri acted all stuck-up, but she was nicer to Bu. Maybe it's because  
he could actually say her name right. Heh, maybe she finds him attractive.

Maybe he's cute for a demon, but he finds the idea of an angel falling  
for him hilarious. She'd love to see _that_ happen!

* * *

Kieri couldn't deny it, she was... Intrigued, by Buwaro.

Despite being a demon, he showed no signs of being outright evil.

Bloodthirsty, yes, but he was also surprisingly nice outside battle.

And he wasn't an isolated case, either. His "Daddy" Iratu was actually  
very friendly. Granted, he had a tendency to be very loud, possibly  
without realizing it.

Azurai was extremely rude, but showed no signs of being outright evil.

She had the feeling that Kazai would _not_ approve of the rather  
"dubious" company she'd been keeping.

Her mind was unusually open, her mind subject to change without  
notice, but Kazai was "traditional", and stubborn to the bone.

She wanted to get to know Buwaro better. She would, starting tomorrow.

* * *

Azurai was the only one who remembered having a dream that night. It went like this:

Azurai sat in a red velvet chair, in a mostly dark room, the only  
light coming from a small candle on a table next to the chair in front of him.

In the other chair, another Azurai sat.

The other Azurai stared expectantly at him.

_Well?_

"Who the fuck're you?"

_I'm the Azurai who murdered that young couple, shithead. I've been  
alien to you for some time. Here I am. Talk to me._

Azurai was puzzled, to say the least. "But I'M Azurai! Who the fuck are you?"

_I'm your past self, dipshit. I'm the one responsible for that little incident._

"It wasn't a 'little incident', it was a fuckin' tragedy that I caused."

_No, I'M the one who caused it. YOU, the present Azurai, are completely fuckin' clean._

"So you're saying that I should just say 'that wasn't me, that was  
someone else I used to be? Are you fucking kidding me?"

_So, what, you're a bastard unequivocally?_

"Exactly! I'm not gonna buy into that 'I didn't do it, that was past  
me' horseshit. You're still me, past or not."

_So, do you feel bad about it?_

"No, but I'll fucking own up to it! I can never consider myself a good  
person, no matter how much good shit I do, because that'll never erase  
the horrible shit I did throughout my entire goddamned life."

_Tell me, if you're such a complete bastard, what the fuck do you live for?_

"... My son, and my husband. I want them to be happy."

_I'm gung-fuckin'-ho for that, then._

And then he woke up, remembering every detail, but not telling anyone about it.

* * *

Sam jostled Buwaro awake. "C'mon, lazy bum! Wake up!"

Buwaro tried to glare at Sam while yawning. "Is there some intangible  
force compelling you to do that, or do you really just think I can't wake up on my own?"

"A little of both! Everyone else is already awake, up and at 'em!"

Outside, his dads stood waiting for him, Dad with his hands behind his  
back. "You ain't ever gonna guess what we found by the bay an hour ago."

Buwaro became leery. "It's not what I'm thinking it is, is it?"

"Ta-dah!"

It was Thaddeus, wearing tacky hipster-shades. "Peep-eep, peep!" He  
immediately curled behind Buwaro's neck, like always.

Buwaro smiled. "Just what I needed."

Iratu began telling everyone what had happened the day everything went  
wrong, and had gotten to the part where the people were turned into Wraiths.

Needless to say, none of them took this news very well. At all.

After everyone had calmed down a bit, he continued. "There were  
several more of those Specter things. One looked like a cross between  
a bat and a frog with three heads." Iratu grinned at his husband. "It  
nearly ate you, remember? I had to save you!"

Azurai sighed, clearly he'd been reminded of this incident a _lot_.  
"Yeah, yeah, you did. Now everyone knows about  
it, so will you **_STOP FUCKING TALKING ABOUT IT?!_**"

Iratu guffawed in loud satisfaction. "Sure, honey! Anyway, they busted  
up the whole town, and we spent all day looking for Buwaro.

The next day, we took the last operating train to Verdenola, we  
thought we had found him, but it was a Specter in disguise! And who figured it out, HMMMMMM?"

Azurai was clearly restraining himself in front of these people. "**You** did."

"RIGHT! I did! See, Buwaro would never say that Azurai's a-"

"_**Nobody here needs to know what that fake Buwaro said!**_"

"Point is, my husband here" Iratu, in an unprecedented feat for an  
earth demon, actually managed to rib his husband without breaking said  
rib, "actually bought it, hook, line, and sinker!"

"Tell the whole goddamned world, why don't you?"

"When I have the time, honey! Anyway, the Specter was really this ugly  
thing that looked like a... Uhhh... Bird-lady-mannequin with wings  
made of doilies. ... Not that I know what those are, or anything!"

Everyone had a good laugh at that.

Iratu would've blushed if he could. "Anyway, we (mostly I) killed it, and we went to Barracalo, an-"

Azurai decided to have some revenge on his husband. "And then Iratu,  
being the wonderful dumbass he is, ended up losing Thaddeus and  
chasing him around the city, accidentally knocking people over left  
and right, and one poor bitch got her ass knocked right into the  
water! And then he dropped the chase altogether  
to sample every fucking flavor of ice cream he could."

"I was trying to figure out which one to get for you!"

Everyone had another good laugh at this, even Iratu. Gotta love 'im!

"Anyway, we found Buwaro after that, you know the rest."

* * *

After Buwaro finished telling about what happened to his group during  
that time, they held a meeting to discuss their next course of action.

Buwaro laid a notebook flat on the table. "It's clear that these  
Specters aren't going away anytime soon, so let's start taking notes  
about them. Everyone, what have we learned about them so far?"

Iratu, surprisingly, was the first to raise his... Whatever word you  
call it, he raised it. "Each one seems to have its own gimmick and  
weakness. For example, the skinny gray one was helpless without its  
Wraiths, the doily-bird-thing became vulnerable when we figured it  
out, and the scarecrow one burned like a leaf."

"That's a good observation, Daddy." He began writing in his notebook.

"Anyone else?"

Azurai raised his hand next. "That doily-bird could talk when it  
impersonated Buwaro, so that thing might've been sentient, to an  
extent. Dunno about the others, or what their motivation might be."

Buwaro wrote some more. "Right, possibly sentient. Also should note  
that at least one of them had the ability to turn people into Wraiths.

Whether all Wraiths, or even all Specters may once have been people is up for debate."

Sam hopped up, hand raised.

"Sam, just your hand will do."

She sat back down. "Well, I notice that they have a tendency to fall  
from the sky. Dunno if that's true with all of 'em, but the resulting  
'CRAAASH!' makes easy to know when one's about to attack."

"Right. Noted."

Toby raised his hand. "We don't know if they reproduce, since they  
never last long enough for us to find out. Also, is the Dragon Island  
Archipelago the only country that these things have been attacking?"

"That last one's definitely something we need to know. Anyone else?"

Cliff just sort of lazily lifted his hand. "How can a bunch of kids keep  
beating things that are capable of wiping out entire cities?"

Sam spoke without raising her hand. "Because we actually _fight  
them_. Most people just go 'AAAAAAH, MONSTER!' and run. That, and  
we're actually really good at fighting them. Even Toby's got the chops  
to take 'em on! We couldn't have beat that invisible thing without him."

Toby blushed. "Don't forget Sakido, my idea wouldn't have been possible without her."

Now it was Sakido's turn to- Wait, she was covered in fur, how could  
she blush? Regardless, she would've done it just then, if it were  
possible. "Well, it was just some wind magic, any wind demon could've done that."

"'Could have done' is a long way from 'Actually did'."

"Fair enough. Also, I noticed that the one we fought in Junglira  
actually bled, but the ones I helped fight in Thornwood didn't."

Buwaro wrote that down. "Only some of them bleed, that's pretty weird."

Kieri raised her hand. "Where do we go, now?"

Buwaro thought about this for a minute. "Well, Mr. Sinclair mentioned  
something called a Tracker's Map. Mr. Sinclair, what is that?"

Cliff lit a cig. "If I remember correctly, it's supposed to show where  
someone was 24 hours ago. It's supposed to be used in conjunction with  
good old-fashioned investigation, obviously."

"Right, so is there anything else to say before we end this discussion and bring that map out?"

There wasn't.

* * *

When the group went outside, Iratu was eager to see what a Tracker's Map looked like.

Buwaro unfolded said map. It looked like a blank piece of parchment.  
"Okay, so how do you use this?"

Mr. Sinclair handed Buwaro a pen and ink. "You write the full name of  
whoever you're looking for, and then it'll show you a map with an  
arrow indicating where they were yesterday."

"Alright, so we've found five out of the eight people we've been  
looking for. Who should we start with?"

Kieri got closer to Buwaro, under the pretense of getting a better  
view of the map.

Iratu suspected she just thought his son was cute.

The way she blushed made it _really_ obvious, though she probably  
thought she was hiding it like a ninja. "Let's look for my brother  
first. Kazai Suizahn."

Buwaro wrote the name down. "How the hell... He's way over in Fragaria! How'd that happen?!"

Kieri gaped at the distance her brother had somehow travelled in so  
short a time. "How is that possible? Was he abducted?"

"Who knows? Let's try Toby's parents next." He wrote "Gladys Wheatley,  
Cave Wheatley." Buwaro stared dumbfoundedly at the map as it pointed  
near where Kieri's brother was.

Iratu waited for someone else to say what he was thinking. When no one  
else said it, he did. "Maybe one of those Specters took 'em there. Maybe with magic?"

Everyone looked at him. Maybe that was _too_ good a guess.

Buwaro especially seemed impressed. "Wow, Daddy, that's... Actually a pretty good guess."

"Question is, how're we gonna get there? Toby's boat ain't big enough  
to hold all of us, and the ferry we took to get here don't go to Fragaria."

Just then, he heard a husky female voice with a southern drawl. "You says you need a ride to Fragaria?"

* * *

Sam immediately recognized that voice. "Sahne! It's been forever since we last saw eachother!"

Kieri looked like she was being stared at by a bear. "Y-you... Uh, know her?"

Sam rolled her eyes. "_No, I always greet complete strangers like  
that._ Of COURSE I know her, I know lots of people! I get around, okay?"

Bu ribbed her, grinning. "Yeah, by _freight-jumping_!"

Sam pouted. "I only did that ONCE, Bu!"

Sahne smiled warmly. "I see you hasn't changed much!"

"So, what're you doing here?"

"I owns the Ms. Cow's Ice Cream franchise, an' I was inspectin' the  
one in this city. I's been told Buwaro's Daddy's a big fan of that one!"

Everyone laughed, again including Iratu.

Sahne walked over to Kieri. "An' who's this young lady?" She offered her claw for a Hand/claw-shake.

Kieri shrank back a bit.

"Oh, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to scare ya."

Bu stood by Kieri, nudging her a bit. "It's alright, she won't hurt you."

Again, Kieri blushed. That girl's in danger of having a stroke if that  
keeps happening. "I-I'm Kairi- I mean Carrie-, I mean-"

Buwaro chuckled softly. "Her name's Kieri. Kee-AIR-ee. Got it memorized?"

Sahne nodded. "Yup. She your girlfriend?"

Buwaro burst out laughing. "Nope, 'fraid not! We're helping her find  
her brother. Although..." He looked at her like she was a helpless  
little bunny. "She's obviously gotta crush me. I mean, a crush _on_ me!"

Kieri looked horribly embarrassed. He'd apparently seen right through  
her, and had even laughed at her.

He either didn't notice her expression, or pretended not to.

Either way, he was being really freakin' insensitive about it, even  
Sahne, Uncle Cliff, and Bu's dads seemed to think so, by the looks on their faces.

Sahne tried to change the subject. "Well, I just happen to be goin'  
back home to Fragaria today, so takin' a few old friends along wouldn't be no trouble."

Surprisingly, Bu didn't point out the double-negative. "Thanks!" He  
turned towards Uncle Cliff. "Mr. Sinclair, can Sam come with us?"

Uncle Cliff exhaled some smoke. "Yeah, but I'm coming with you, too."

They set sail for Fragaria that day.

Unbeknownst to them, Barracalo was attacked by Specters three hours later.


	7. Chapter 7: Is This A Date?

Sakido decided that now would be a good time to get to work on that  
promise she made to herself last night.

Who to talk to, though? Well, how about the _other_ "cool" person on the boat?

She walked as casually as she could over to where Kieri was sitting.

That girl had a way of making herself seem small when the time called  
for it. It wasn't just the ability to hide her halo and wings, it was  
something in her attitude that Sakido just couldn't put her finger on.

She sat next to her, trying not to seem intimidating, which was  
difficult with her height and huge wings. "So... Uh... Are you feeling alright?"

Kieri looked Sakido right in the eye. "What's your motive?"

"Pardon?"

"Why have you been helping everyone look for their families?"

Sakido was honestly surprised that this girl would even have to ask.

"Well, Buwaro's been a good friend of mine since he was a little kid,  
so I was glad to help him find his dads. Sam and Toby are close  
friends of his, so I'm helping them because Buwaro is, and I'm helping  
you because it was Sam's idea. That, and..."

Sakido looked down, avoiding eye-contact. "I know what it's like to  
lose your loved ones. I wouldn't wish it on anyone." She looked at  
Kieri again. "I want to help you all find yours, before it's too late."

Kieri looked really surprised at this. "So... There's really nothing in it for _you_?"

"No! Why would you assume that?" She was more than a little offended.

Kieri had that mortified oh-shit-I-just-said-the-wrong-thing look on  
her face. "Ah, well, I... Ah... Um... Well, I kinda just- I... Well, I didn't-"

"Okay, I get it. Seriously, is it tradition for angels to be racist  
fucks? Honestly, next thing you're gonna tell me that you thought  
demon courtship rituals involve eating human hearts."

Kieri now wore that oh-my-Gaia-I-totally-thought-that face.

She had a lot of faces for oddly specific situations and emotions.

Sakido could read body language so well, people accused her of reading  
their minds. And Kieri was an easy read, once you cracked that  
eggshell-thick facade. "You put up that 'cool' facade of yours because  
you're scared to expose yourself to other people, because you might  
get hurt. Trust me, I know how that feels. I do it, too."

* * *

Sam knocked on Bu's cabin door. "Open up, Bu. We need to talk. Now."

The door slowly opened, Bu looking like he dreaded what Sam was gonna say. "Yeah?"

She walked into the room, and sat down. "The way you talked about  
Kieri _right in front of her_ was really freakin' tactless, Bu.  
And this is coming from someone who yells about how huge an earth demon is _every time she meets one._"

Buwaro avoided eye-contact. "Sorry."

"Hey, don't apologize to me, apologize to _her_! She could be  
crying her eyes out right now, she's got a really obvious crush on  
you, and you made a joke of it. Who does that? And don't gimme that  
'I'm a demon, I can't help it' crap! You've gotta own up to that kinda  
thing, and work on making it better!"

"But how?"

"Bu. Apologize. Do something to make her feel better. It's not complicated."

"So what do I do, get a guitar and serenade her?"

* * *

Kieri sat in her cabin, thinking about everything that had happened that day.

Just then, she heard someone strumming a guitar from the other side of  
the door.

_"Donna toki datte  
Tada hitori de  
Unmei wasurete  
Ikite kita no ni  
Totsuzen no hikari no naka me ga sameru  
Mayonaka ni_

_Shizuka ni deguchi ni tatte  
Kurayami ni hikari o ute"_

Kieri opened the door. Yes, it was him, Buwaro.

_"Imadoki yakusoku nante fuan ni saseru dake kana  
Negai o kuchi ni shitai dake sa  
Kazoku ni mo shoukai suru yo  
Kitto umaku iku yo_"

As bizarre as the song choice was, it worked. He had her. That  
heartless, purple demon had her, and she knew it.

He apparently knew it, too. That sweet and goofy smile of his said it  
all. "Sorry about earlier, today. I was hoping we could be friends."

Friends? Come on, demon, you obviously know better than that! "Uh, sure."

"That's great! Maybe we could get some ice cream, sometime?"

But on a date, or just as friends? I can see right through you, you're  
just messing with me on purpose, aren't you?! "I'd love that."

"Well, I've gotta get to bed, now. G'night!"

"Good night."

He shut the door. Was he walking away smugly, or doing a little  
victory dance? Had this gone exactly as planned, or had he been nervous about it?

She couldn't tell.

* * *

The next morning, Sam was jostled awake by Bu, who had apparently just  
gotten up, still a little wet from taking a bath. "C'mon, lazy bum! Wake up!"

Sam rubbed her eyes, and laughed. "Vengeance begets further vengeance, I see!"

"Thaddeus woke me up early, looks like you're just as lazy as I am!"

Sam giggled. "So you noticed!"

Bu chuckled and patted her on the head. "Anyway, we've landed in Port  
Dorade, might wanna get ready! Snooze-you-lose!"

Bu ran off to change into his day clothes.

She got up, got clean, and got dressed. She also accidentally got a peek at Bu's Daddy sleeping.

Man, he was so freakin' adorable, when he was asleep. Actually, he  
pretty much looked like a big cuddly puppy-dog 24/7, didn't he?

She walked inside, compelled by the irresistible urge to pet him.

Bu's Dad had apparently already left, so there'd be no harm done,  
right? She climbed up onto the big guy's chest, and petted him on the  
muzzle, causing him to chuckle in his sleep.

And then he got up.

Sam barely managed to avoid falling by clinging on to the round white pendant he always wore.

The string on said pendant broke, and Sam plummeted to the floor...

Onto Iratu's foot.

Iratu at first didn't seem to notice. Then, he winced in pain.

Sam got off his foot. "Ahaha, er, sorry! Ah, here's your... Pendant... Back?"

Iraru roared, and began growing even bigger than normal.

* * *

Buwaro heard Sam screaming.

Goddammit, what had she done _this_ time?

Bu noticed the pendant in her hand. "Sam, what have you done _this_ time?!"

"I- I just wanted to pet him!"

"Sam, can't we leave you alone for ten minutes?!" He  
then realized that Mr. Sinclair had said the same thing at the same time. Weird.

They heard Iratu roar, and he broke through the ceiling.

He looked more or less the same, but was now over 12 feet tall. He  
stretched, wrecking it even more. "**HOT DAMN, MUST'VE GOTTEN OF THE WRONG SIDE O' THE-**"

Everyone had their ears covered.

Buwaro's were ringing terribly. "Daddy, inside voice, please!"

"Sure thing, son. Now, who's the idiot that took my pendant?"

Everyone instantly pointed to Sam.

She sheepishly held it out. "Ah, s-sorry! Here you go!"

Iratu chuckled. "Won't do any good, now. We've gotta get me a harness  
for that thing, sometime."

Sam looked at Buwaro. "Bu, what just happened?"

Buwaro shook his head. Can things just go right for him just  
_once_ in his life? "Daddy was born... Special. Basically, he  
grew way bigger than even an earth demon normally should, and he'd  
been the size you're now seeing until I was about 10, when a friend of Dad's-"

"Your Dad has _friends_?"

Buwaro and Iratu couldn't help laughing. "Yes, Sam, as unlikely as it  
sounds, Dad has friends. Two or three, I think. Anyway, a friend of  
his got hold of a genuine Moon Pendant, and tinkered with it to put it  
in reverse. It now weakens or shrinks the wearer instead of making  
them grow stronger or bigger. But _now_..."

Buwaro gestured towards his Daddy. "We don't have anything big enough to attach it  
back on with, so... Guys, look away while Daddy puts on some new clothes."

* * *

Sam had seen and done a lot of awesome things in her life.

Riding the world's biggest demon was one of those things.

After they left Port Dorade, he was carrying Bu, Sam, Toby, and Bu's Dad on his back.

They were travelling to St. Curtis, and Sam decided to pass the time  
(and show off) by telling them a couple of things about where they were headed.

She talked about how the two settlements became one, and about what  
the town was famous for. As, well as the rumor that St. Curtis is a  
popular place for Meeros the Mortori Guardian to appear.

Bu facepalmed. "Oh, goddammit, I can't believe I didn't get it before!"

"Didn't get what, Bu?"

"Remember that guy we met two years ago? The guy who turned into a  
huge Mortori when we fought that first Specter?"

"You mean... Was his name Mortimer?"

"His name wasn't Mortimer, his name started with an O... It was Ortimor."

Then she got it, too. "Oh, I get it! Ortimor wore a mask, and his name  
was an anagram of Mortori! You think he was really Meeros in disguise?"

"Right, isn't it a little suspicious that a _Guardian_ shows up  
before a Specter wrecks the place? Not that I'm jumping to conclusions, but still."

Toby was obviously kinda scared, but excited, too.

Bu then smiled wryly. "Hey, Sam, what _were_ you doing in Daddy's cabin, anyway?"

Aw, crap, she knew this would come up eventually. "Well, I..."

"You were totally petting him, weren't you?"

"Was NOT!"

Bu patted Sam's head mockingly. "Aww, did Sammy wanna pet my big, sleepy Daddy?"

"No way! I was just gonna wake him up!"

"Pfft, yeah, right! If that's the case, why were you holding his  
pendant? You don't steal stuff for no reason like that. My theory is  
that you climbed onto his chest, petted him on the nose, then he got  
up, you grabbed on to the pendant, and then it broke off."

Dammit, that was exactly what had happened. "I... I plead the Fifth!"

Bu's Daddy laughed really, really loudly. "I'm naturally irresistible, that's  
why my husband married me! Ain't that right, honey?"

Bu's Dad uncovered his ears. "Damn right, I had no other choice."

Sam then thought of something funny. "Hey, how come I never see you  
two kissing? You're so _madly_ in love," Snicker! "I'm surprised I've never  
seen you so much as peck eachother, let alone make out. C'mon, you two, let's see some smoochin'!"

Bu's Dad shook his head so violently, it could've come off. "**HELL  
FUCKING NO!** Last time we tried that, that shithead almost ate me whole!"

Bu's Daddy gagged. "Yeah, getting him back out wasn't pretty, it took  
forever to get all that fur outta my mouth. BLEH, not very tasty!"

Toby slowly backed away from Bu's Daddy's head. "Please don't ever eat me, Mr. Ricardo."

"I won't. And please, call me Iratu."

* * *

Lazuli and Talus had just finished kicking that weird thing's ass.

They got the fuck outta there before anyone figured out who had just saved their sorry asses.

Talus seemed pretty damn confused about it, as they got in the small  
boat that Lazuli had prepared beforehand. "Why'd we leave? They  
probably would've rewarded us, big time. We'd be heroes!"

She glared at her partner-in-crime. "We ain't heroes, mate. Had there  
been more of us, and less of them, we would've sacked that town faster  
than you can say 'knife'. We're gonna gather us a new crew, and do what we do best."

Talus looked at her like she was crazy. Maybe she was, but who cares?

"Look at us, Laz. We're old now. You blow all your retirement funds or something?"

"No, I'm still filthy stinkin' rich. I tried that retirement crap, and  
it was boring. There's no rest for people like us, Talus. I've lived  
on the sea, and I'll _die_ on the sea. It's only been two years,  
for fuck sake, I did it back then, and I'll do it again now! Are you with me, Talus?"

He looked at her, completely calm but serious for one of the few times  
in his life. "You know that we're probably both gonna die on this  
expedition you're planning, right? The world has changed a lot since we were kids."

"So be it, then. If the world's gonna change, let it change! If I'm  
gonna die, I'll simply laugh! Death is nothing to the Baroness!"

"Then we'll die together."

* * *

They finally reached St. Curtis.

The town was surrounded by a sea of flowers, the sweet scent beckoning them to the town's entrance.

Buwaro had a little joke he'd saved just for this occasion. "Mind your  
Ps and Qs around here, guys, or the Bs will get'cha! Haha!"

Nobody laughed.

Sam gave him a thumbs-down. "Boooo!"

Buwaro turned towards her. "Yeah?"

"Don't quit your day job."

"Never had one."

Sam shook her head. "Bu, stick your hand in that magic sack and say 'One Trouble Center badge'".

Buwaro put his hand behind his neck. "Oh, yeah! Completely forgot  
about that. Y'know, we didn't see Mr. Atalanta at Verdenola last time  
we went there, hope he's alright."

"Well, there's a Trouble Center here, maybe we'll see him there!"

"I doubt it, why would he come all the way out here?"

* * *

Sam was pretty curious. "So, Mr. Atalanta, why'd you come all the way out here?"

Mr. Atalanta looked down, like it hurt to remember. "The Trouble  
Center in Verdenola was destroyed, and after I heard that those  
monsters were attacking other places, I came here to check on my good friend Kinako and her son."

"Are they alright?"

Mr. Atalanta nodded.

Sam pointed at Kieri. "So, Mr. Atalanta, have you seen this girl's brother?"

Mr. Atalanta looked her over. "I may have, what was his name?"

Kieri looked him right in the face. "Kazai Suizahn, sir."

Mr. Atalanta looked like he was trying to remember. "... No, I have not. My apologies."

Kieri was obviously trying not to look dejected, and apparently  
thought it was working. "No need to apologize, sir."

Bu walked over to Kieri. "Hey, since we're here anyway, why don't we  
check out that dessert parlor over there?"

She was clearly trying not to blush. She failed miserably. "A-alright."

The two of them walked over to the dessert parlor, no one following them.

* * *

Kieri had only known him for a few days, and she was already crushing on him.

Yes, he was a demon, but she found him very attractive, oddly enough.

She decided to just outright ask what was on her mind.  
"Buwaro... Is this a date, or are you just being friendly?"

"That depends, do you want it to be?"

She didn't hesitate. "Yes!"

He clapped his hands together. "Then it's a date! Good thing you  
asked, too, I think you just saved us a crapload of angst."

"Yeah, definitely!" He didn't know the meaning of the word.

"This is my first time dating someone, by the way. Have you done it before?"

Kieri was his first date? She found that rather hard to believe. But it  
actually made sense, considering how alternatingly sensitive and  
heartless he'd shown himself to be. "I have, actually. About twice, it wasn't anyone worth mentioning."

Buwaro shrugged. "Alright, then." He called out to the waiter. "Hey,  
waiter! One strawberry shake with some firebee honey, and a-" He  
turned towards Kieri. "What would you like?"

"I'll just have vanilla."

"And one vanilla for the lady!" He looked back at Kieri. "It's on me,  
of course. Anyway, why do you have such an obvious crush on _me_, of all people?  
And how did it happen in so short a time?"

This wasn't the kind of thing you talked about on a date! Well, if he  
was going to be blunt, she might as well be as well. "Well... I think  
it started when you actually said my name right. That, and you're a  
rather impressive fighter. And... Well, I've always liked fuzzy  
critters- Er, people! And you sing gorgeously. Look, I really don't  
know, I find it as weird as you do! Maybe you're just really charismatic in general."

Buwaro laughed. "Well, at least you're honest about it. Anyway, enough  
ego-stroking, tell me about your interests, what kind of hobbies do  
you have? I'm fairly sure that's what people talk about on a date, isn't it?"

Kieri nodded. He was at least trying. "I think so, yes. Anyway, my  
hobbies... I like studying foreign languages, archery, ah...  
Swordfighting, that's something I like... And flying, ever since I earned my Sun Pendant."

"Those don't really sound like hobbies, though."

"Huh?"

Buwaro "Well, they all sound more like school subjects you  
particularly like, rather than something you do for the fun of it. Not  
that there's anything wrong with liking that stuff, but still, it  
sounds like you're studying 24/7."

She'd gone with him for dessert, not to be psychoanalyzed.  
"Well, I like foreign literature, does that count?"

"I guess. But we came here for dessert, not to be psychoanalyzed.  
Oh, hey! There's our shakes!" He raised his glass. "To our first date!"

As they clinked their glasses together, Kieri couldn't help thinking  
that this could turn out to be a very... Unusual relationship. A good one, but unusual.

* * *

Buwaro was glad that Kieri was feeling better.

And it was cool that she was at least honest about her feelings, once you outright asked.

Still, he'd never expected to have an angel find him attractive. Sure,  
he could imagine scenarios where an angel and demon could start out as  
friends, and have that slowly blossom into affection, but the idea of  
an angel having an outright crush on a demon was weird.

Of course, it'd be just as weird if he suddenly had the hots for, say, a jakkai or khamega.

He couldn't help wondering whether this kind of situation was what  
lead to Toby existing. Probably not, he figured it was the  
friendship-slowly-becomes-romance variety.

The lack of Specter attacks was rather nice, though he felt like he was tempting fate by thinking that.

Buwaro finally remembered that they'd left the dessert parlor, and  
were still on a date. "So, where to?"

Kieri looked around, apparently unable to find a particular thing  
among the various attractions. "I've never really been to a place like this, actually."

Figures. Gods help her if they'd come here during the Flower Festival  
(which his dads said was really fun), she'd probably faint from  
sensory overload. "Well, we could always just wander around. It's  
pretty around here in the Fall."

It sure was, and walking around without having to worry about the monster of the day was nice.

If this was what dating was like, he hoped they could do it more often.

* * *

Later that night, Azurai simply couldn't sleep, so he had wriggled  
loose from his husband's grip, and stood outside, contemplating the stars.

He inhaled, and exhaled some smoke. He wasn't using a cigarette, he'd  
figured out how to blow smoke without one.

Saved money, and his lungs. Demons could only use their magic under  
stress, but Azurai being who he was, this was never a problem.

He was pretty much always a little tense, even if there was nothing to  
be tense about. Would he have been like this if he hadn't had such a  
shitty life, or would he simply never be completely happy in any life?

He'd never know.

"Dad? You awake?"

Azurai exhaled again. "Yeah. Something eating you?" He had the feeling  
it was about him. As happy as their reunion was, it didn't make everything hunky-fuckin'-dory.

There was still some unease between them that wouldn't just magically  
go away. Maybe it would fade over time, maybe it wouldn't, but it definitely  
wasn't going to happen all at once.

Buwaro stood by him. "I've... Had a lot of questions lately. Ever  
since I found out about you-know-what, my mind's connecting dots,  
and my imagination's been running away with me."

Azurai tried making eye-contact with his son, though it was pretty  
damned uncomfortable. "Well, you can ask me anything. Even if I don't  
like the question, I promise I'm gonna answer it. And if I ask you a  
question, you don't have to answer it."

Buwaro's red eyes always seemed unusually... Soft, yet probing. "What  
did you do to Eric, that kid who I got in a fight with one time? Oh,  
and by the way, I won that fight, he had learned his lesson."

"Of course, you're my boy, wouldn't expect anything less. Anyway, as  
for what I did to him... Well, I didn't technically do it to _him_."

Buwaro looked increasingly worried. "What did you do?"

"Well... Y'see, he had this cat he was real fond of, he spoiled the  
fat little bastard rotten. So, when he wasn't around, I lured the cat  
outside with some tuna. And then... I went to town on that thing, and  
left the carcass near the neighbor's fence."

Buwaro seemed kind of relieved. "That's it? How'd you get away with that?"

Azurai opened his mouth wide and snarled. "See these teeth? They look  
just like a dog's. The neighbor has a dog. Get the picture?"

"Eugh..."

"Yeah. I told you, I'm an evil bastard, and I would've done worse to  
him if I could've gotten away with it. You're a good kid, just like I  
hoped you'd be. You're the reason I say three words I thought I'd never say; I love you."

After a silence that felt a shitload longer than it was, Buwaro spoke again. "I love you too, Dad. Unconditionally."

* * *

The albino stood atop a tree, surveying her surroundings while  
throwing some eggs he "found" in a bird's nest at the buildings below.

"Ah, St. Curtis. So peaceful." Splat! "So tolerant." Splat! "So  
beautiful." Splat! "BOR-IIIIIING! I'm gonna have so much fun with this  
place, especially considering what I've got in mind for this dump!"  
She glanced at the black, egg-like crystal in his hand. "When this baby  
goes off, all hell's gonna break loose here. AHAHAHAHAHAHAH-AAH! BIRD!  
BIRD! BIRD!" She swatted away the bird that was trying to peck her eyes  
out.

That must've been the bird that laid those eggs, and boy was it MAD!

* * *

Azurai climbed back onto his husband, and into his arms.

Iratu nuzzled him. "S'thin' wron', hun?"

"You're awake?"

"Nuh, still sleepin'. Can tell you're 'wake, though. I sleep weird, didn't I tell you? Talk t' me, I'm lis'nin."

Well, shit, what do you talk about when the other person's asleep?

"Well, so much shit has happened, and it's barely been a week. We lost  
our home, got seperated from our son, and now we're helping him look  
for his friends' relatives. Just what the fuck're we gonna do after all this is over?"

Iratu made a sound like a cross between a growl and a hum. "Worry bout  
that later, hun. I have a feelin' this ain' gonna be over for a lon'  
time. S'thin' else you wanna tell me? I heard everythin' you an' Bu-Bu said. What's you-know-what?"

Azurai's heart almost stopped. "I... Well, I guess I shouldn't keep  
secrets from you, so... I... Well... Fuck..."

Iratu kissed him with the tip of his tongue. "Hun. Just tell me when you're ready. Night."

Azurai didn't know what to say. He just kissed his husband back, (which  
got some fur in his mouth, BLEH, not very tasty!) and laid back down.


	8. Chapter 8: Is Any Of This For Real?

When Buwaro woke up that morning, he was a different person. Literally.

More specifically, judging by his height and gender, he was Sam. He looked in the mirror.

Yep, Sam he was.

How did this happen? Was turning into someone else a part of growing up?  
He hadn't gotten the memo about that.

He decided to go find Sam, assuming she was now him.

He found "himself" sleeping in his bed. D'aww, he was so adorable when he slept.

On one hand, he could wake Sam up the same way she'd do it, but would  
that count as him waking her up, or vice versa? And furthermore, what  
if this wasn't a swap? What if this Not-Buwaro had all his memories and personality?

What if he was no longer Buwaro? If everyone but himself said that he  
was Sam, then, voilà! He was Sam! It was as simple as that! That was who he was!

... Actually, that sounded like bullshit. Still, better act like Sam, just in case.  
"C'mon, lazy bum! Wake up!"

Probably-Not-Buwaro yawned. "Who're you?" He jumped. "AAAAH! Why do I  
sound like Bu? And look like him? And YOU!" "He" pointed at Definitely-Not-Sam.  
"Who are you, and why do you look like me?"

The real Buwaro laughed. "Because we've switched bodies somehow, Sam.  
You're lucky, you get to be me for a while."

Sam let that sink in for a second. "Oh, gross! Now when I shower,  
I'll have to wash your... BLAH!"

"Hey, you don't have anything _I'd_ wanna see, trust me."

"Ditto. Man, this is so weird, I've got fur ALL OVER ME! And I feel so  
hot, too, like I swallowed a furnace or something!"

"I'm surprised you can stand being so short, cold, and furless. Guh,  
let's go take a bath. Separately, I mean, although either way, we're gonna be seeing eachother's-"

"LET'S GET IT OVER WITH!"

They got it over with. Separately, of course.

When they got out, it was agreed that they'd never bring up bathing as each other ever again.

* * *

Sam was BU? How the heck did this happen?! Now she'd have to cope with  
being hot and hairy and smel- Well, actually, he smelled pretty nice.

If she were older, she'd dare say sexy.

But she was 12, for cryin' out loud, "sexy" would have to wait. Well,  
actually, she was technically a 16-year-old now, so "sexy" would do.

Still, it felt weird thinking that your best friend smelled sexy.

And maybe the constant heat explained why Bu used to be so freakin'  
grouchy 24/7. And she'd never really appreciated how soft his fur was.

Like, really soft, holy cow. It also shed a lot, she noticed, and it  
kinda bugged her. Again, maybe that's why he used to be so grumpy.

"Bu, this is a weird thing to say, but I gotta start hugging you more often."

* * *

They stood in front of the exit to the wagon. Buwaro had Sam's hand on  
the doorknob. "So, should we tell them, and if we do, who do we tell first, and how do we prove it?"

Sam just shrugged.

"Thanks, Sam. What would I do without you?"

"You're welcome, Bu. Can I hug your Daddy?"

Way to get to the point. "You have a crush on him or something? 'cause he's taken _and_ gay."

"Ew, no. He's more like a big puppy to me."

"Hence his current dilemma."

They stepped outside. Sam ran over to Daddy and hugged his leg.

He was clearly surprised by this. "Uh, son? What's with the sudden affection?"

Sam was obviously enjoying it a lot. "Oh, just missed you so much."

Daddy picked her up and hugged her tight. "Well, I missed you too, son."

Dad grabbed Daddy's leg. "Hey! I want in on this gooey shit, son!"

Buwaro decided to spill the beans before Dad could get pissed about it  
when he found out. "Everyone, Sam and I have swapped bodies."

Everyone stared at them. And then they burst out laughing.

Toby was laughing the hardest. "Good one, Sam! Or should I say 'Buwaro'?"

Didn't know he had a sarcastic streak. Damn.

Buwaro didn't quit that easily, though. "Guys, I'm _serious_. We  
woke up as eachother this morning. We've been attacked by weird things  
falling from the sky, been sent forward in time, and yet you find body-swapping hard to believe?"

Daddy stared at Buwaro. "Well... You have a point, there. I believe  
you." He then grinned at Sam. "Did widdle Sammy-wammy wanna cuddle the  
big black doggy? I get that all the time. Like I said, irresistible!" He chuckled.

Dad shook his head, exhaling smoke. "So, how the fuck did all this happen?"

Sam and Buwaro both shrugged.

Buwaro looked in dismay at Sam's body. "At any rate, if we don't fix  
this, my second date with Kieri's gonna be awkward. Well, more than  
usual. And I do _not_ wanna go through puberty twice."

* * *

Sam was pretty embarrassed, but man, was getting close to Bu's Daddy  
worth it. So huge and fuzzy, not to mention he smelled nice, surprisingly.  
Kinda like crushed leaves and grass.

Bu's nose was really sensitive, so she noticed scents a lot. She could also hear a lot better, too.

Anyway, though, they had searching to do! Both for Kieri's brother,  
and the guy who swapped their bodies!

So, if Sam were a body-swapping maniac, where would she go?

Later...

"The dessert parlor? Really, Sam? _That's_ where you think the culprit's hiding?"

"Sure, Bu! Everyone likes dessert. I figured we should retrace your  
steps from your date with Kieri. We might find him along the way,  
y'know? Plus, we can't just ask a bartender, since we're not old  
enough, and bartenders probably aren't really like that."

"But what if he hangs at bars and shoots Pool, like bad guys are supposed to?"

Sam stared at Bu blankly. Seriously? "You really think like that. You  
actually think that's how evil people work. Amazing."

"But my Dad's evil, he says so himself, and he likes Pool."

Sam shook her head and sighed. She was a lot more worldly than Bu  
could ever hope to be. "Fine. Anyway, just start asking around here,  
then we'll go to the next place. Excuse me, sir, do you know about any..."

Even later...

"Bu, you went to a toy store? On a date?"

"Well, yeah! Girls like cute stuff, right? I got her a blue plush chicken, she really liked that!"

Bu was just so... Weird. As if anyone could possibly find any criminals in this place.

An albino teenage girl shoved them aside and ran past them,  
clutching a small rabbit doll. "MOVE IT!"

The doll's owner, a little khamega girl, ran after him. "GIVE THAT BACK!"

Nevermind.

Sam lost no time in running after him as well. "You get back here, you jerk!"

Another neat thing about being Bu, he had really long and stretchy  
legs, so running wasn't a problem at all.

The thief, however, was really freakin' fast despite being a lot  
shorter, and she could barely keep up with her.

When on a leisurely stroll, St. Curtis is a nice, big place to wander around in, with lotsa stuff to see.

When chasing a bad guy, however, it was a PAIN IN THE BUTT, to put it nicely!

It just so happened that today was Market Day in St. Curtis, meaning  
that there was a lot of junk for that jerk to toss behind her in the marketplace.

Here's a few things she tossed at Sam; a bunch of tacks and nails, some  
marbles, pineapples, hedgehogs, a pet rock that had a weird dent that  
was visible no matter which way you turned it but Sam didn't notice  
that because she ducked in time and IT'S A FREAKIN' ROCK WHO CARES?,  
and a blueberry pie. Which was delicious, by the way.

The other places she had to chase hher through were; a church (in the  
middle of Mass, no less), a ladies' bathhouse, a chicken coop, a bar,  
a fancy sushi restaurant, a street performance (the act was  
hot-coal-walking, good thing she was Bu, ouch), and a vaudeville act.

Finally, she'd chased her up to a water fountain, where the girl jumped up to the top.

Sam was panting hard by this point. "Alright," Gasp! "you! Hand the" Gasp! "doll over, right NOW!"

The girl sneered. "You want it? Come _get it_, sucker!" She then  
swallowed the doll whole. _Sick._ The egg-shaped jewel in her hand burned with  
a black flame. "Just in time! This baby's just about to hatch!" She  
threw it to the ground, and the entire area suddenly changed in the blink of an eye.

Sam was now in what looked like a huge mixed-medium corn maze, little  
white strokes vaguely resembling crows populated the cobalt sky, which  
looked like the artist had used his finger in lieu of a brush. The  
cornstalks were sketched carelessly with green and yellow pencils, as if the artist was in a hurry.

One notable thing was the absence of any sun or moons, she could see  
the vibrant colors of the place just fine, despite there being no  
visible source of light, and no shadows at all.

That lack of a light-source unsettled Sam, for reasons she couldn't quite put her finger on.

She'd figure that out later, though. Right now, she had to get outta  
there, which presumably involved kicking someone/something's butt!

She ran through the twisting, winding, branching paths, frustrated that these twisty passages all looked alike.

Exasperated, she slammed against the stalks, hoping they'd give way.

Just her luck, they did, revealing a very narrow mud path.

Taking that as a good sign, she dashed right through it.

She saw a huge, crudely-drawn beehive with a door-sized hole. Seeing nowhere else to go, she stepped inside.

The inside was essentially a collage of old photographs, held together  
by honey. In the center was a gigantic bedridden queen bee, wrapped in  
bandages and tended to by 9 smaller pastel bees.

Sam began to slowly back out of the house, but when she got to where  
the door-hole should've been, she bumped into a wall.

She'd apparently ticked off the bees, and now the door was gone.

GREAT. What would Bu do?

Sam reached into the magic sack. "One rapier!" She hadn't really used  
a sword before, but she'd have to figure it out quickly Maybe Bu's muscle-memory would help her out.

The bees darted towards her with their stingers erect, and she jumped  
out of the way and slashed at them. She missed. Just dodge the bees,  
and slice 'em when they're just past you, easy!

She kept trying this strategy, and missed every time.  
Bu made this look so easy when HE did it! How did she keep missing?!

She wildly swung the sword in the air, hoping to cut SOMETHING.

Finally, she hit one of the bees, making a huge gash in it, which  
brought it down long enough to finish the job.

She sliced another, crushed another, and impaled another! Hey, this  
was kinda fun! She impaled one, then ran two of 'em through at one!

She was on a roll, here!

The remaining three charged at her, and she cleaved them all in one swing! Awesome.

The queen screeched, and there were even more of those bees, more than  
Sam could count. There was no way she could've killed them all!

Then she remembered. Bu was a fire demon. And she was feeling really freakin' stressed right now.

She let out a huge blast of fire that quickly burned the whole place down, bees and all.

Last thing to do was to kill the queen. She approached it slowly,  
grinning. "Aww, all gone! Sayonara!" She raised the sword, ready to run the sucker through.

Wait, what was she DOING?!

She put the sword away. The beehive was gone. She could leave, now.

She walked away, leaving the queen to mourn her lost hive.

The area around her suddenly went back to normal, the albino jerk nowhere to be seen.

She saw Bu finally catching up to her. "Sam! Sorry I'm late, but  
you're so damn short, I could barely keep up! ... Sam, what's wrong?"

Sam was crying, just a bit. That bloody euphoria that came over her  
just then, was that what it was like to be Bu? Maybe it really WAS because he was a demon!

Just then, she swapped bodies with Bu again. She was herself, again.

It was weird, seeing Bu with tears she'd just shed.

She hugged him. "Bu... Being you is so scary..."

Bu looked pretty freakin' confused, to say the least.

* * *

Buwaro was rather surprised when Sam had told him everything that happened.

She still looked really upset about it. "And now she's all alone,  
those bees were just trying to protect her!"

He was still hugging her, even when they'd gotten back to the wagon.

Hugging people was evidently his specialty. "Sam, those bees attacked  
you, you did what you had to." And she felt remorse for it, that made  
her a better person than a lot of people. "I think that black egg thing  
was what caused the body-switching in the first place."

They didn't say anything else for a while. Just having her best friend  
there was clearly enough to help Sam feel better.

* * *

Eventually, Sam stopped crying, and they went back outside.

It was weird, being comforted by the same person who you've just  
finished being, especially when being them's what upset you in the first place.

But she decided not to think about that.

She walked around town a bit, looking at the damage that albino jerk  
had done. Just what was that girl's problem, anyway?

The vendors at the marketplace were all picking up their stuff, trying to salvage what was left of it.

And the less said about the fountain, the better. Apparently, messing up reality really wrecked the place.

Still, it could'a been a lot worse. At least the place wasn't burning, or whatever.

As she walked back to the wagon, she was stopped by Kieri.

Sam tried to step around her. "Uh, excuse me! Can I help you, lady?"

"Tell me, is Buwaro taken?"

"Huh?"

"You went into his room and didn't come out for a while. You've got  
strands of his fur all over you. Are you two in a relationship?"

Sam let the implication sink in, then gaped. "WOOOOOOAH, lady! No!  
We're just friends, for cryin' out loud! I've known him since I was  
eight! Do you know how sick that would be if we did whatever you think we did?!"

"Just checking."

Sam sighed, shaking her head. "Lady, you've got some serious issues."

Kieri looked surprised. "What?"

"Look, you've barely even known the guy for a few days, and you're  
already jealous! You don't trust anyone, how will you two ever grow  
close? Is having you for a girlfriend really what's best for him?"

Kieri didn't say a word.

"Look, I'm not saying you two won't make good couple, but you've got a  
lot to work out. First, cut the holier-than-thou crap, learn to  
trust people, and go get some actual self-confidence instead of this  
transparent facade you've put up. Then maybe you'll be girlfriend material."

Surprisingly, instead of getting ticked off, Kieri grabbed Sam's hand.

"Help me do it, then. I want to be a better person, and not just for Buwaro's sake, but my own."

"You can start by asking nicely."

"Very well. Sam, will you please help me?"

"Sure."

* * *

Kieri was having doubts about this. "Sam, a-are you sure we should be doing this right now?"

Sam rolled her eyes. "No, let's wait 'till _next year_! Of course  
we've gotta do it now! Look, it'll be easy, I'll introduce the two of  
you, and you just carry on a normal conversation with him!"

"B-but what do I talk to him about?"

"Stuff you'd talk about with anyone else!"

But Kieri never really talked with anyone else! "B-but Sam, I-"

"No buts! Oh, hey! Here he comes, now! HEY, MR. ATALANTA!"

Mr. Atalanta walked over to them. "Yes?"

"I wanna introduce you to Kieri Suizahn, Kieri, this is Mr. Atalanta!"

Kieri took a deep breath. "H-hello, Mr. Atalanta."

The black and blue reptilian demon held out a scaled hand. "Hello, Kieri. It is nice to meet you."

She shook hands with him. That wasn't so hard. Didn't have to think about it.

Sam began to walk away. "Well, I'll let you two get to know eachother,  
now! I've got... Uh, stuff to do!" She gave Kieri a cheesy grin, a wink, and a thumbs-up as she ran off.

Kieri figured she might as well do as Sam said. "So, ah... How long have you known Sam?"

"About two years. It has been a long time since we actually met  
face-to-face, but we have been writing letters to one another. How  
about you? She has never mentioned you before."

"I've only known her for a few days, we've been searching for  
relatives together, we've found all of them except for Toby's parents, and my brother."

"Is that so? Buwaro, Sam, and Toby were lost when I first met them.  
It's a long story, though, and I think she'd rather be the one to tell you about  
it. It is a shame I never had the chance to meet Buwaro's parents, I was busy that day, and the one before."

Kieri considered whether to try taking him to meet them. On one hand,  
this was meant to be practice for when she'd need to talk to someone  
on her own without resorting to her facade.

On the other hand, he'd probably like to meet them. Ultimately, she  
decided to try that. "Well, they're nearby, if you'd like to meet them."

"By all means! If they do not mind, of course."

* * *

Azurai sat on a park bench, tearing apart a drumstick. His husband  
and son had both gone to help Toby look for his parents, and he  
figured he wouldn't be any help.

To his surprise, Cliff, of all people, actually approached him. "I've  
got something on my mind, demon. I'd talk to your husband about it,  
but he's helping Toby look for his parents right now, so you're a last resort."

Azurai glared at him. "Just what the fuck makes you think I'd be any  
help, whatever the hell it is you're thinking about?"

"You're the only other parent here."

"... What're you getting at?"

Cliff sighed. "You're really that dense? We just found out that my wife is pregnant."

Azurai immediately got what he meant. "What, you want advice, is that it?"

Cliff nodded, looking a little reluctant.

"Well, I haven't got a damn clue what to say. I'm pretty sure you know  
that the world's a shitty place, and that people are inherently  
assholes, you've gotta prepare your kid for that. Sheltering leads to  
naïveté, too much encouragement makes your kid a reckless shithead,  
and you can't expect any recompense or reward for all your hard work.

If you didn't already know all that shit, you're not fit to be a parent."

Cliff lit a cigarette, and there was silence for a while. "I see. We  
think a lot like each other, demon. I'd almost say we're not that different."

* * *

A criminal tends to return to the scene of the crime.

Toski was no different. Of course she'd wanna see the aftermath of her little romp through St. Curtis.

She had to be careful about it, though. She knew all the little nooks  
and crannies she could hide in and get a good look at what she did without anyone noticing.

But so did Meeros. Of course that guy'd love a place like this, the damn showoff.

She hadn't seen him in some time, but she knew he'd show up  
eventually, and when he did, she'd better have been out of th-EEP!

There he was! She darted away as quietly as possible.  
She'd get him someday, and his little birds, too! Just not today.

* * *

Buwaro, his Daddy, and Toby hadn't found Toby's parents.

Buwaro, however, saw someone who looked familiar. "Daddy, hang on, I  
think I just saw someone. If it's who I think it is..."

It was who he thought it was. "Ortimor!" He ran over to where Ortimor was. "Hey, remember me?"

Ortimor turned around. "I think I might, actually! Hold on for a sec!"

He pulled out a little purse, and began rummaging through it. "Hmmm,  
lessee, here..." He pulled out an enormous yellow dress, and held it  
up in front of Buwaro. "Hmmmm... You've grown a bit of a goatee,  
Elanor!" He laughed. "Good evening, dear Buwaro! Lovely evening, my dear! It's been... How long, again?"

"About two years. Hey, can I ask you a question?"

"You just _did_, my dear! If I'd said no, then that'd be too bad for you, lovely!"

Buwaro couldn't help cracking up at that. "It's too bad we never got  
to finish that show. Anyway, though, Sam, Toby, and my dads are here,  
too!" He turned towards Iratu. "HEY, DADDY, TOBY! C'MERE!"

Ortimor gawked as Iratu and Toby approached. "... Is that the  
legendary Fragarian Scythe-Dog, or your did your Daddy gain a little weight?"

Buwaro chuckled. "My Daddy's kind of a freak."

"I take it you're adopted, then?"

Buwaro rolled his eyes. "No, my Daddy's the world's first pregnant  
male. Of course I'm adopted, ya dingus. Anyway, I've got a very serious question to ask you."

"If it involves my measurements, you can forget it, buster!"

"Are you Meeros?"

Ortimor froze. "... Let's talk about this in private."

* * *

Kieri and Mr. Atalanta had arrived back at the wagon just in time for  
Buwaro, Iratu, Toby, and Azurai to show up, followed by a mysterious masked man with raven-black hair.

Mr. Atalanta walked over to Azurai. "Are you Buwaro's father, by any chance?"

Azurai glared at him. "I'm one of 'em, yeah. The hell're you?"

"I am Lakritz Atalanta, a friend of your son's, I met him, Toby, and  
Sam two years ago in Verdenola, and I have kept in touch through the mail."

Azurai connected the dots. "Oh! Yeah, he told me about you."

Mr. Atalanta offered his hand.

Azurai, surprisingly, shook it.

Mr. Atalanta let go. "So, when you said you were one of his fathers, what exactly did you mean by that?"

"My husband and I adopted him."

Mr. Atalanta nodded. "That certainly explains much."

Iratu sat down next to them, looking very much like a friendly dog.  
"I'm Iratu, Buwaro's Daddy. Pleased to meet'cha!"

Mr. Atalanta actually offered his hand again, and Iratu shook it (and him, unintentionally).

Thaddeus flew towards Mr. Atalanta. "PEEP!"

Buwaro chuckled. "Hey, Thaddeus sure seems to recognize you! Anyway,  
can we call an impromptu meeting, here? We need to discuss some things with my friend, Ortimor."

Ortimor nervously tugged at his collar. "Er, in front of all these people?"

"Yes, I trust 'all these people'. Besides, if this thing's as big as I  
think it is, then it's everyone's business, plain and simple."

Mr. Atalanta bowed. "I do not mean to intrude on any private matters of yours."

"No, no, you're not intruding! Like I said, the problem at hand, the  
Specter problem, is everyone's business."

* * *

After finding a space in an open field outside the city where they  
were unlikely to be interrupted, Buwaro made a bonfire, and began the  
discussion. "Okay, guys, a recap of what's been happening, these  
bizarre creatures that we've named 'Specters' have been destroying  
places left and right, and we need to find out how to get rid of  
them." He pulled a weird rock given to Sam by a merchant as a token of  
gratitude. It had a dent that was visible no matter what angle you  
looked at it from. "This weird rock's gonna be the Talking Rock. We'll  
hand it around, and whoever has it may speak uninterrupted. The order  
it's handed in doesn't have to be circular, but everyone must get a  
chance to speak. Alright, who wants it first?"

Sam jumped up. "Ooh! Me, me! I've got something!"

"Just your hand will do, Sam." He handed it over.

"Thanks, Bu. Anyway! I've got a theory. Bu's Daddy mentioned a Specter  
that turned people into Wraiths (those are a Specter's flunkies), and  
I figured it's possible that _all_ Wraiths and Specters used to be people,  
kinda like zombies. It would explain each Specter having a theme, like one was  
a plant princess, another was zombie with a magic clock, and the  
first one we ever fought was really into theatre. If my theory's true,  
then maybe that's a reflection of what they were like when they were  
people. Oh, and by the way, Ortimor, are you secretly Meeros? You turned into an- AWK!"

Ortimor had snapped his fingers. "Neat little trick I figured out, it  
always interrupts people in... Mid... Sentence..."

Sam glared at him. "Bu said NO INTERRUPTIONS!"

Ortimor sheepishly shut up.

"Ahem. Anyway, you turned into a huge glowy Mortori bird when we  
fought that Specter in the Theatre, and we were wondering if you  
happened to be Meeros." She offered the Rock to him.

He took it. "Thank you. Anyway, frankly, my dear, I don't know. I  
apparently lost my memory one day, and I've had had to relearn  
everything. Literally _everything_. I still haven't figured it  
out, myself, so I took up the name 'Ortimor' when I figured out that I  
could... Do that. So I may have once been Meeros, I may not. Alas, my  
past is lost forevermore, and I've made a living as a travelling  
performer. That is all I know, my dears." He offered the Rock.

This time, Mr. Sinclair took it. "I've met Meeros before. Mind taking  
off that stupid mask so I can see if you look like him?"

Ortimor looked away. "This mask isn't some crazy disguise. I was  
horribly disfigured in an accident, and I'd rather leave it on."

"Uh-huh. Well, you look just like him, and your personality's pretty close, too." He held out the rock.

Dad snatched it. "All I can say is, I don't know what the fuck we're  
gonna do when this clusterfuck is over. Thornwood is a fucking wreck,  
and hundreds of people are probably dead. I'm scared shitless that we  
might not be able to lead a normal life again. I've been through  
poverty, it's hell." He held out the rock, as if demanding that someone take it.

Mr. Atalanta took it carefully. "I don't have much to say, except that I'll help in any way I can." He held it out.

Toby hopped up and took it. "I have a confession to make. In spite of  
how scary and dangerous this journey's been so far, I'm glad all of  
this is happening. My old life was boring, and I was never good at  
anything in particular. I felt like I was just taking up space. But  
then this adventure's happened, and when I helped kill that Specter  
back in Junglira, I felt like I was actually needed. As selfish as I  
am for saying this, I don't want this adventure to end for a long  
time." He sheepishly held out the rock.

Kieri gently took it. "I hope I become a better person on this  
journey, and that I won't be a burden." She held out the rock.

Daddy held out his massive claws to Kieri, obviously startling her, if  
the adorable little "EEP!" she squeaked out was any indication.

She tossed it up to his claws.

Daddy cleared his throat. "Lately, you've all been talking about  
yourselves, and finding your loved ones. That's fine, but remember  
that we all have a much, MUCH bigger problem. The Specters. We gotta  
find out where they came from, and how to get rid of 'em for good. And  
as for what we're gonna do when this is over, we'll cross that bridge  
when we get to it." Iratu dropped the rock.

On Buwaro's foot. "SON OF A SUBMARINER!" He winced in pain as he rubbed his foot.

"Son! Are you okay?!"

"I'm fine, daddy. Though I broke a toenail, gah."

Sam giggled. "At least it didn't hit your head. You'd be suffering  
from a very minor case of serious brain damage, then!"

Ortimor shook his head. "A shame your toenail got broken, sweetie.  
You've got such cute feet! Want me to kiss it better?" ... Cute feet?

Weird.

Dad stood up and pointed a sharp claw close to Ortimor's neck. "HEY!  
Nobody kisses my son's injuries but ME! ... Well, and my husband." He  
turned towards Buwaro. "Do you want me to do it?"

Buwaro appreciated the offer, weird as it was. He'd done it before,  
when Buwaro was little. A lot, actually. He was accident-prone. "No, but thanks anyway, Dad."

Sakido picked up the rock. "Well, anyway, Iratu just about summed up  
what I was thinking. I have to say, though, that was unusually observant of him."

Daddy chuckled. "Well, my muscles weren't the only thing that got  
bigger!" He nudged Dad, grinning. "Know what I mean, honey?"

Dad crossed his arms. "I'm not gonna play Ride 'em Cowboy with you tonight, it'd wake everyone up!"

... "Ride 'em Cowboy"? Buwaro couldn't help laughing at what that "game" might entail, gross as it likely was.

Daddy guffawed loudly. "I meant my BRAIN, honey!"

Sakido cleared her throat. "Anyway, does anyone have anything else to say?"

Kieri raised her hand. "I think Buwaro has cute feet, too. And cute  
horns, and teeth, and eyes, and hair, and... Well, he's cute in general. That's all."

"Right. Anyone else?"

"PEEP!"

That was all.

* * *

Kieri was eager to know how much progress she'd made on her  
self-improvement journey. "So, how did I do, today?"

Sam smiled. "You did pretty good, for your first day! Granted, you've  
gotta learn how to keep a conversation going for more than two  
minutes, but you're doing good, so far." She gave Kieri a thumbs-up.

"You might turn out to be a good girlfriend for Bu after all!"

Kieri could've squeezed herself with glee at that thought!

* * *

Buwaro lay in bed, wide awake. He was thinking about everything that  
had happened that day. His thoughts wandered to his Dad.

Buwaro was still shocked that Dad had done such an awful thing.

Yet he didn't hate his Dad at all. Dad and Daddy were the best parents he could've asked for.

Granted, his Dad's worldview was very harsh, and  
while he didn't abuse Buwaro, he didn't coddle him, either.

He had done everything he could to prepare his son for the dangerous world out there.

One time, he'd taken Buwaro to the zoo, and pointed to every single  
animal, and then told him about various ways said animals could kill him.

He could still remember every word. "See that stupid-looking ostrich,  
son? It could easily outrun you, and fuck you up in a matter of seconds."

Dad had also bought him ice cream shortly afterward, to cheer him up.

Another time, he taught his son to swim. Which didn't go well, at  
first, but Dad was in the water with him. "Son, you're gonna end up  
having to swim, sooner or later, you can't count on someone  
else saving you. I don't like the water either, but this is shit  
you've gotta know." Eventually, it became rather fun, once he learned how to swim.

Buwaro remembered the time from two years ago when Sam was about to jump out of a moving train.

Dad had taught him well. He'd also made sure that Buwaro learned how to fight, and use weapons.

Not that there weren't days where the two of them didn't just goof  
around, though. There were plenty of happy memories with him.

Ironically, some of them involved playing in the sea at the beach.

And yet, these memories became bittersweet, because this was still the  
same man who'd murdered his blood parents. Buwaro still had a hard time accepting this.

Maybe he never would.

Regardless, Dad and Daddy were his _real_ parents. Nothing would ever change that.

* * *

Azurai sat outside, pondering how he'd gotten to this point.

As much as he loved his son, there was always the fact that he'd  
essentially stolen the boy. His life as a parent had all started with a murder.

He still didn't regret it, or feel any remorse, but it scared him.

Just how pissed-off did he have to be for something like that to happen?

... It wasn't a thing that happened, it was a thing he'd fucking _done_.  
There was no redemption for that shit.

Nothing would erase it. And, selfishly, he wouldn't want to erase it.

He wasn't exactly a serial-killer, but that day wasn't his first time.

When he was a teenager, his mother sent him off to a "troubled boys"  
boot camp, likely as an excuse to get rid of him.

He still had nightmares about that place.

The place had a shitload of rules about not making eye-contact, not  
speaking, and loads of other offenses.

Punishments involved being locked in a room called the Dark Room, and  
forced to sit on his legs, nose an inch from the wall, arms held  
behind him without touching his back nor eachother, and his back and  
neck had to be kept erect. It wouldn't take long for his arms and legs  
to fall asleep, no blood whatsoever circulating between them. They  
ached and throbbed, reducing him to tears. Just when he thought he was  
gonna collapse, he was given a one-minute bathroom break, then sent  
back for another hour.

Three hours. Three one-minute breaks.

Another one was force-feeding you cheap grain and made to drink a  
gallon of water, then being denied bathroom access for a day. If you  
pissed yourself or crapped your pants, an hour in the Dark Room.

Kids who had been there for a longer time were expected to "enforce" the rules there.

With their fists.

At lunch (which consisted of beans and rice, which caused him to lose  
about 60 pounds from malnutrition over time), they were constantly  
told that they were worthless pieces of shit.

The last straw was when they'd somehow gotten wind of his sexuality.

They had the most "attractive" boys in the facility undress in front  
of him, while he was forced to swallow ipecac, making him vomit the entire time.

He finally snapped.

His first victims were the entire staff. Slit throats, skewered  
hearts, and the occasional broken neck were all it took.

Most of the older kids were too terrified, and the ones who tried to  
stop him got scars and broken limbs for their troubles.

When he finally got to the monster who ran the place, he didn't give  
him the luxury of a quick death.

The bastard's eyes were the first to go, skewered by Azurai's claws.

He broke the man's nose, jaw, then his arms and legs. Slowly, letting  
the man scream all he wanted. No help for him came.

Azurai didn't enjoy it, he was too numb by that point. There was,  
however, a sense of relief when he finally slit the fucker's throat.

The man responsible for all his suffering in that place was dead.

By the time the authorities found the bodies, Azurai had already fled,  
and the rest happened more or less how he'd written it in that diary.

The only other incident that came about from such limit-breaking was  
Buwaro's blood parents. He was too numb to care about their deaths.

But somehow,for reasons he still didn't unserstand, seeing that purple-furred baby  
awakened feelings he didn't know existed.

Even if Azurai could never be completely happy, he wanted to make sure this kid was.

Seeing Buwaro's goofy smile was what brought him joy. It gave his life  
meaning. And while raising the boy was far from easy, it was worth it.

Buwaro was always weird, but a sweet kid. The worst his  
"terrible-twos" got was his teething. Furniture was reduced to  
splinters. Bandages were needed for Azurai and his husband's arms.

Plus, dangerous shit attracted the little kid like a frosting-coated  
magnet with a sign that said "YUM YUM, COME GET SOME" attached to it.

Hence why he had to teach his son how to swim, defend himself, and  
about dangerous things and people in general.

And then there was what happened when he got hold of basically  
anything that left a mark on things. Markers, pencils, crayons, paint,  
it didn't matter. That kid would turn into a little vandal the second he got his hands on something like that.

And the kid was always so proud of it, too. He'd be all "Look, Dad! I made art!"  
It was impossible to get angry at the adorable little wrecking-machine.

And while Buwaro began to resemble his Dad just a bit when he was 14, that passed by surprisingly quick.

Somehow, he had the feeling that Buwaro would've  
turned out to be a good kid no matter what kind of life he'd lead.

* * *

Iratu was already asleep. But he slept weird, so he was just as aware  
of sound, heat, and touch as he was when he was awake.

He was also completely lucid the whole time. Not much really happened  
in his dreams, they were always silent, and he was always alone, save for the sounds of the real world.

At the moment, he was beneath a starry twilit sky in a grassy open  
field, the kind where the sun was just about set and the stars were  
visible, but the sky was still a gorgeous cobalt. The fact that he actually was sleeping  
just outside the wagon certainly helped. He was obviously too big to  
fit inside any buildings, so Azurai had to bathe him with a brush and  
sudsy water like a big dog every day, just like they used to.

It was sweet of him to do this, and they could still have a little fun while they were at it.

He could've technically had any dream he wanted, albeit without sound,  
but he liked peaceful, beautiful ones like this.

It let him think.

Even his thoughts were silent, they appeared as words written in stardust.

**_I've been having these weird thoughts lately._**

**_Like, is any of this for real, or not?_**

**_Really weird... Or not?_**

**_It all happened so suddenly, I can still barely believe it._**

**_Everyone seems to be so dead-set on these short-term goals of theirs,_**

**_finding their loved ones._**

**_Not that there's anything wrong with that, those are reasonable goals._**

**_But they don't seem to think much about the bigger picture._**

**_Maybe they assume someone else is going to get rid of those Specters._**

**_But maybe we are that someone else, to someone else._**

**_This is a big thing. Bigger than all of us._**

**_Heh, even me._**

**_Oop, I hear my husband walking back towards me._**

**_Grass crunching beneath his feet._**

**_I feel him climbing onto me. Hee hee, that kinda tickles._**

**_Pulling my arms over him like a really heavy blanket._**

**_It's always nice, huggin' him like this._**

**_He doesn't seem as restless tonight._**

**_He's already tuckered out. Aww._**

He shut his dream-eyes and focused only on his husband's breathing and charcoal-scent.


End file.
